Alone
by musicalsoul
Summary: Paradise always was a breath away. Reaching it in this new world is just as hard as before. --OCs included--
1. A Rude Awakening

_**DISCLAIMER :**_ I own nothing of Wolf's Rain, or the characters that you recognize. I only own my OCs. This disclaimer will apply every time I post, if I continue this story.

_**Chapter 1**_

Floating. He was floating. Somewhere—he didn't know where—but every part of his body was suspended. He was semi-conscious, not able to move and caught in the fragile line between lethargy and wakefulness.

Where was he?

All he remembered was blood; blood and grief, the smell of the lunar flower, and great, green rolling fields. He remembered Hige and Blue, lying side by side, and the deranged gleam in Darcia's remaining eye. He remembered his precious Cheza disintegrating into nothing but seeds, blown away by the wind like ashes after a funeral pyre.

He could recall the feel of her tattered robes and faint traces of her sweet scent. Oh, the lovely scent! What he would give to have a more tangible memory of those last moments—the very final, lingering instants that seemed to pass almost instantaneously, and at the same time, crawled by at a painstakingly slow pace.

He could still feel the ice seeping through his thick fur, stained a frightening scarlet, proof that the life within him was slipping away. The ice broke—yes, it broke, and he sunk down, further; the water had swirled violently when the ice had cracked. The light of the world above had faded from his sight as the water entered his lungs.

But now, there was warmth—welcome or not, it was warmth, and it was real. He could feel his fur again; it was soggy and sagging with the weight of the moisture. A summer breeze blew by, chilling him even though the day was bright and sunny.

He slowly opened his eyes to the world; it was an unfamiliar place, and the sun was clearly visible overhead in a sapphire colored sky. His head was pounding, as if the guns that Jaguara's troops had been firing were still shooting at him. Disoriented and defeated, he simply let his head drop back to the soft grass—it smelled sweet; he tried to ignore the pain that laced his sides.

_Cheza…_

He would have whimpered the name out loud had it not been for the fire spreading through his limbs. A half whine managed to escape from his lips, and his ears twitched, taking in the different sounds that he was now aware of.

There were birds chirping in trees; a soft, hollow blowing was audible as the wind swept through the grass, making it seem like there was a wave of green—first it went in one direction, and then turned suddenly, mirroring the movements of the gentle current of air.

It was nothing more than a vast array of sounds that someone would have normally bypassed, yet to him, it was one of the greatest symphonies in the world. The serenity he felt was something he had never experienced before, lying here in the swaying grass.

It was ironic—all his friends had died, including the one he held dear to his heart—he was bleeding, and at a complete loss as to where he was in terms of location…and yet, his soul was at peace. He welcomed the placidity, letting it take over as he shut his eyes.

_Just…a short nap…_

- -

Peta wiped the sweat from her brow, vaulting over the fence and out of the pigs' pen. They snuffled behind her, pleased with their feed and the mud that she had moistened for them. The girl sighed, dusting her ragged overalls. The boots on her feet felt heavy after running around the farm half the morning, trying to catch a very wily sheep that had managed to escape from the pen.

She shook the gloves off of her hands, letting them fall on the boxes that were piled next to the pigsty. Bringing her fingers to her mouth, Peta blew a sharp whistle, and a blur of black fell upon her, semi-pinning her to the ground with calloused paws.

Peta felt the humid breath on her neck and the paws on her back, and gave an exasperated sigh.

"Okay, you got me. Get off, Ahote. Off, boy!" she commanded, and the black dog jumped off of her immediately, panting and tongue lolling out with excitement. He barked and jumped up onto his hind legs, front paws punching the air in front of him. Peta laughed and caught his paws, and they 'danced' across the yard, earning themselves queer looks from the animals.

Peta let go of her dog's paws, and he flopped to the ground, fidgeting at her side.

"Shall we see what Nana's up to?" Peta asked, and Ahote barked again, even though he didn't know what she was saying. They walked across the yard, and Peta opened the screen door into the kitchen. A stern voice stopped her before she could take another step.

"Take your boots off, little one."

Peta sighed again and threw off her boots. "Okay, Nana, you got me. I'm clean." She walked into the kitchen, grabbing a towel that was hanging from a peg with a fluid motion borne of learned habit. Peta bent down and efficiently cleaned Ahote's paws of the mud they had accumulated with swift movements. The black dog trotted past her, completely oblivious of his mistress' shocked lock.

"Hey! Don't I at least get a 'thank you'?" Peta asked, putting the rag into the sink; Nana was standing over the said sink, peeling carrots as diligently as an army general putting his troops into line.

"You will never get a token of appreciation from that spoiled dog," Nana said, continuing to chop the vegetables with frightening accuracy; the remark wasn't meant to be kind, but there was a hint of humor in it.

"I wonder what Ahote would be like if he could talk," Peta wondered absentmindedly, picking a knife and helping with the cutting of the assorted vegetables.

"He would never leave you in peace," Nana replied smoothly. Peta laughed at her grandmother's reaction, and looked over her familiar features.

Nana was a short and nimble woman for her elderly age; her hair was black, a few streaks of white running through it—it always seemed to be tied in a bun at the base of her neck. Peta wondered how her hair could remain so perfect despite her work on the farm. She was of Lakota origin, and pretty proud of it, too.

"Did the feeding go well?" Nana asked, now plonking all the vegetables into a huge pot.

"Yeah. Considering that I'm not covered head to toe in muck, I'd say it went well," Peta answered, dumping her share of vegetables into the cooking pot.

"The anniversary is nearing, you know," Nana said, and Peta went rigid; she slackened soon after, bending over the sink like a wilted flower.

"I know, Nana," she said, putting a potato forcefully into the pot. She turned to the door and slipped into her boots again. "I'm going for a walk."

Nana nodded and watched as Peta whistled for Ahote. The faithful (albeit super-hyperactive) dog bounded to her side, and the grandmother watched her granddaughter walk outside and let Ahote run amok; she heard several disgruntled squawks of chickens, and a yelp of pain.

Nana sighed, and turned back to cooking. "That child…she will get into trouble one day."

- -

He was still lying there, eyes closed; he could feel the blood crusting over on his fur. He had no doubt that if he tried to remove it, he would also take away chunks of his own fur. It was not a pleasant image to entertain, so he thought about other things. Such as, where was he?

His senses were much sharper now, and the pain throbbed and stung worse than before. He could not move, though. Every time to twitch a limb, some wicked cut would pull with the movement and he'd retreat to his old position.

He was sure that there was a crease in the grass where he was; the sun had climbed higher in the sky, and he predicted that it might become uncomfortable in the heat if this kept up. The fur did not help at all, either.

But, again, he was simply just too tired to budge from his spot. He knew that he should be getting up and looking for the rest of them—but the pain…it still clouded his head and made him dizzy. He could smell his own blood, and it was a nauseating odor.

He needed to—no, he _wanted_ to get to his feet and continue his journey.

He didn't know where he wanted to go.

The urge was just _there_.

- -

Peta was walking along the outer most fence of the farm, kicking a stray rock here and there. "Yeah, the anniversary. Just lovely," she muttered, face dark; she left deep footprints where she trod, a mark of her anxiety. Ahote whined and wagged his tail in a concerned manner.

"Don't look at me with those awful puppy eyes," Peta grumbled, trying to avert her gaze from the Australian Kelpie dog. Finally, she gave in and petted him roughly on the head, mussing up his velvety black fur and making him flustered.

Peta laughed. "You asked for it!"

Suddenly, Ahote stiffened. His tail went up, and his hackles stood on end. Peta was slightly frightened; was the dog mad at _her_? Ahote sniffed the air, ears pricked forward like some otherworldly satellite system. His lips curled backwards in a snarl, and he moved protectively in front of Peta.

She was baffled.

"Ahote, boy, whatcha doing?" she asked, kneeling softly beside the dog.

He just turned away from her and crouched down, growling so loud that Peta could feel it through the hand she had on his shoulder. She turned in the general direction that Ahote was growling in; there was nothing there—at least, she thought so. The grass seemed to run on, continuing into a blanket of soft green.

But as she looked closer, Peta could see that there was a missing lump of grass; where a portion was supposed to stick up, there was nothing there. She frowned. Perhaps another family of raccoons had come to settle here again? They couldn't have it, if that was the case.

Peta inched a little closer to inspect, and Ahote gave another snarl, which sounded something halfway to a bark. She stroked him on the head, and gently clipped the lead that she kept in her pocket around his collar.

"Down, boy. Whatever it is, I'm sure you can take it on," she assured quietly, fondling Ahote's head. The dog seemed to calm down slightly, but his vibrant eyes were still glazed over with wariness.

Peta moved forward, lead in hand.

- -

There was someone out there. He was sure of it; the wind carried one—no, two—foreign scents; both of them were recognizable. The first was the distorted, blurred and altered scent of a male dog; there was no denying it. All wolves had sort of the same smell as dogs, but dogs had been so bred and changed by the humans that they had developed a sort of branched off scent that was immediately noticeable. To wolves, anyway.

The second was a female human, and she had many other smells on her—he could detect mud, hay, and the reek of stables. It was not particularly agreeable.

He heard growling, coming from the male dog, no doubt. The snarl was an open threat. It always disgusted him how dogs were capable of throwing away their lives for some human that probably didn't care for them anyway. He ignored the growling completely. He perceived the sound of something metal quietly clicking into place, and a few words were spoken by the human. The snarling stopped, and then the grass parted, much to his chagrin.

And there she was, in all her barefaced repulsiveness, a human girl. Her streaked hair was tied back messily, and many locks of it fell in her tanned face. Her eyes were wide and surprised, a honeyed tone of brown. She gasped and fell backwards onto her rear, breathing heavily. Had he been in a better condition, he would have gotten up and left as soon as he could—he wanted nothing more than to be miles and miles away from the creatures that had caused him so much misery.

A black dog emerged from the grass beside her, standing close to the girl, a warning atmosphere lurking about him. The dog growled, and he answered back with an imitation of one. The girl shot a dirty look to the dog, and pushed him back slightly with her hand.

"Who did this?" she said, her eyes now focusing on the scene before her. "I swear…I'll get the ASPCA…the bastard who did this isn't getting away…bum…"

He hadn't the foggiest as to what she was talking about, but his vision cleared when her hand reached tentatively forward.

Summoning the last of his strength, he inched away enough from the hand to get a good aim, and then fastened his jaws tightly over her palm.

- -

Peta practically howled in agony when the dog bit her right hand. Her head swam with the pain, and tears spilled over her cheeks and pooled onto the fabric of her overalls. Ahote gave a great bark, and lunged forward, knocking the dog away from her, unfortunately taking Peta's hand with it.

She hobbled over to where her hand had pivoted, and gave Ahote the command to heel. He reluctantly obeyed. Peta managed to look through her tears and into the dog's eyes—she was taken aback 

by the expression of pure hatred in them. The dog's face was contorted in fury, and he only clamped down harder.

She barely restrained a whimper as she felt her hand's bones being crushed.

"Shit," Peta said under her breath, and then gathered her courage, remembering Nana's advice. She brought her other hand to the snout of the dog, and watched as its eyes flared wide. Pointing outwards with her index and middle finger, she triggered a pressure point just underneath the dog's jaws, and felt relief when his muscles went lax.

She dragged her hand out of the sharp chamber of a mouth, which was now stained with her own blood. "Damn it, your teeth are sharp!" she cursed, holding her useless right hand against her chest, cradling it as the tears carved a way down her cheeks.

"You messed up dog," Peta scowled, and drew away, panting heavily. The dog glared at her, yellow eyes blazing with odium, no doubt directed at her. Ahote was growling warningly, his entire shoulders shaking. Peta scrambled away, her hand hanging uselessly as it bled. She was sure that it was broken in one place, at least.

There was another rustle from the grass, and Peta turned around, horror chilling her body; she felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up—what if it was a buddy of this horrible dog? She shut her eyes in anticipation, and nearly jumped six feet into the air when she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Peta?"

"Nana!"

- -

He had felt bones underneath his jaws snap, but when the girl had leaned over him, fear had bubbled up in his gullet, only making him hinge on tighter. He had felt two fingers press forcefully against his chin, and to his disgust, he had gone as limp as a human's doll. The girl had taken the chance and moved away, dragging dust and mud with her as she went.

He heard her curse and held her hand against her chest, which was now dyed a dark red. The grass divided again to reveal another human, much shorter and older. She called the girl something odd, and reached out for her.

The human leapt up and immediately ran to the elder. The black dog followed, and he was left on the ground, watching from narrowed eyes.

"What happened to your hand?" he heard the old one ask. And then he was caught by the old one's gaze. He was frightened by the understanding and wisdom in the elderly woman's stare, and tried to get up and walk away. He only succeeded in flopping ineffectually to the ground again.

"Nana?" the girl asked, stepping slowly forward and extending her mangled hand. "I-I think it's broken."

The old one broke away from him, and turned to the younger human, muttering in a language he could not comprehend.

"Wha—? Nana, you can't be serious!" she exclaimed, eyes wide again. The old one was stern, and now spoke louder. The young human's face went grim, and she stole a glance at him, sighing tiredly. "Seriously, Nana…where do you get these ideas? A loony bin, perhaps? I'll be back."

And the girl turned around, grabbed the dog's lead, and rushed off in a completely different direction. The old one turned around, and a small breeze disturbed the old woman's clothes. He noticed that she was clad in nothing like he had ever seen before. She was wearing a sort of tunic that had another 

layer of cloth above her shoulders, where it ended in fringes. Before he could understand what was happening, the human was kneeling beside him, too close for his liking.

"You are a skin walker," she said, her face completely serious. The words sent a chill up his spine. "And you harmed my granddaughter. I should skin you and let you dry, wolf."

_That_ got a reaction out of him. He barked sharply, his voice returning in a blast of rage. The old human chuckled and shook her head.

"I will not hurt you." She had a slight lilt to her voice; an accent of some sort, one that he couldn't place. "Peta is still inexperienced, and cannot tell the difference between a dog and a wolf."

He snorted, lying back on the grass. That was something he had to agree with.

"You had no reason to bite her, wolf."

He growled again, and coughed when he felt something coming up his throat. He spat out a glob of crimson liquid, and the old woman eyed it with an arched eyebrow.

"And you are hurt. No matter, your answers will come in time."

He had opened his mouth to protest when the young human came crashing haphazardly through the grass again, the black dog close in tow.

"Here I am," she murmured breathlessly, and he noticed that her right hand was tightly bandaged. "Though I think that I may have to go to the hospital."

"Alright…help me, Peta."

He didn't know what was going on, but the next moment, he was jerked off the ground like some sort of helpless prey—and he did not like the feeling. Despite his numerous and open wounds, he squirmed around in the grip of the two humans, eliciting a cry from the young one, which she bit down almost immediately.

"I don't know why you're doing this, Nana," she said, her voice exasperated.

"This is a wolf, Peta; we cannot leave him out here."

The young one was stunned into silence. She did not doubt her grandmother, obviously. "Alright…whatever. Let's just get this over with, shall we?"

He couldn't have voiced his thoughts better himself. The grandmother chuckled again, a throaty sound, and they continued walking. He couldn't help but wonder what they were going to do to him. With a very hesitant attitude, he reached out with his mind and brushed against the consciousness of the elder. She responded, which was something entirely new to him. Humans were usually narrow-minded cretins who were scared of things that were different.

_Kiba._

He didn't have to say any more. The old woman merely nodded, making her granddaughter give her a curious look.

Not knowing at all why he was feeling safe, Kiba drifted off into sleep, embracing the dark depths of slumber eagerly.

* * *

_**A/n:**_ Please R&R! I hope you enjoyed. : )


	2. Queer Places and Strange Humans

_**Chapter 2**_

_So bright…why was the world so bright? The smell of the flowers was overwhelming, and the sense of peace Kiba felt was something he had not experienced in a very long time. The grass was soft, and the skies were blue—just like the promised Paradise; it was endless, and stretched as far as the eye could see. _

_The soil was slightly wet underneath his paws, and he felt as good as new; as if he could run and bound in the fields forever and never get tired, never get weary of the picturesque surroundings. _

_One thing rose above all, and that was the scent of the lunar flower; it stood out like a spot of ink on a blank paper, and seemed to float everywhere. Yes, this was Paradise. He was sure of it—just like he was sure it was his calling to find this place._

_Kiba turned to the west, ears pricked forward and poised as if he were to break into a run any time. _

_Wasn't this a dream?_

_Was this even real?_

_He could still see Cheza's smiling face in his mind's eye, and feel her hands running through his fur, healing fears and wounds simultaneously. He could smell that lovely scent again…but he could not locate it. Kiba knew that it was within his reach; he knew that it was somewhere close—just out of his grasp, like a sweet tempting a child. _

_He could not track it. _

_Did he want to? _

_Of course he did! What kind of a wolf would he be if he wasn't loyal to the Flower Maiden? The world around him started to blur disturbingly, and he felt the foundations of the earth below rumble and crack violently._

_And then, everything was hurtling away into a black vortex—a yawning abyss that swallowed everything; every light and hope that it came across would disappear into its dark throat, never to emerge. Was that his destined location? To be thrown into a chasm that no one could ever scale or crawl out of?_

_He would not allow it._

_He would grab the very strings of life and grip them until he would sure he would not be lost. It was his duty—to his family, however motley their crew may have been. _

_It was his __**duty**_.

Kiba sprang up, eyes wide and chest heaving as he struggled to get his erratic heartbeat into control. The first thing he noticed was the sun in his eyes; it burned his sight and made him blink irritably so he could eradicate the black blotches hovering in his vision. Kiba looked around, fairly confused and disoriented.

He was inside a house, that much was sure.

A groan made him jolt away from his position and immediately regret it; he felt a particularly deep cut in his back leg pull, and he drew back with a hiss of pain, knotting his jaw to keep himself from crying out. The chaffing of the now-present bandages did not make the itching agony any better.

"It took you long enough." It was the girl's voice, deep and laced with traces of sleepiness and fleeting drowsiness.

Kiba craned his head around to his right to see the human girl getting up from a sanguine colored armchair. She observed him with a critical eye, and then held up her right hand. "See this?" her voice was now angry. He looked at the raised limb; it was coated in a white cover that looked fairly hard. The girl's expression was dark. "You did this. The doctor told me my palm was broken in four places. I also had surgery."

Kiba blinked, registering her words. _Surgery?_ He certainly could not have had bitten that hard. He remembered her tears and curses and yielded a bit. Maybe he could have…

"Anyways," the girl sighed, closing her eyes tiredly. "Nana's out for shopping, and I was stuck with watching you." Ignoring his deep growl and narrowed eyes, she plowed on. "Your fever broke only a day ago, and you've been out for more than a week." She stopped and scrutinized him closely, making Kiba feel a little uncomfortable. "Nana says you can…talk."

_The old woman…_

He felt anger rising in his chest, but the human girl spoke _again_, making him pause and listen.

"I don't believe any of that crap, but if that woman could patch up a wild stag…I'm willing to think that you can…communicate," she said, now uncertain. She sat back down on the chair, now running her left, undamaged hand through her untied hair. Her head snapped up again, as if she was remembering something. Now she looked slightly angry. "You will _not_ touch _any_ of the animals, you hear? You can bite my legs and hands all you like, but you'll keep well away from the animals."

Kiba snorted. This girl was absurd. He made a face of disgust. She hadn't tasted all that good, anyway. What a disillusioned human.

_As if I would bite __**you**_.

The girl's eyes widened until it looked unnatural. She made a choked sound, reminiscent of what cats sounded like before coughing up a hairball.

"Wha—?"

Before she could keep on blabbering and make his ears ring with her ceaseless chatter, Kiba cut her off promptly.

_I only bit you in self-defense._

Her mouth turned into a comical 'o' before turning into an expression of rage. "I was put under anesthesia! My palm was dissected and put together by some freaky dudes four _long_ hours away! Do you have any idea what I have to do to get to a hospital?"

_I do not know and I do not care. You barely escaped. The only reason I'm not out of here is because of your grandmother._

The girl let out a lengthy, slow breath. "I thought you'd say that." She turned her eyes up to the ceiling of the house and murmured. "Why am I doing this?" She sighed again, and looked Kiba in the eye. "The name's Peta."

_How interesting._

She clenched her fists, and immediately relieved the pressure when she flexed her right hand. Peta finally gave a frustrated sound and got to her feet, stomping her way outside and muttering curse words that would have nuns crossing themselves for fear.

He heard her pace around irritably for a while, but then her rapid footsteps ceased. Kiba pinned his ears down on his head. The last thing he wanted to do was be around an already half-insane human adolescent who's grandmother was most likely just as (and maybe even more) nutters than her.

Kiba's sensitive hearing picked up on the sound of an engine spluttering, and all hopes of his escape withered away into his fantasy.

- -

"Nana!" Peta's heart was very near to bursting with relief. She had been cooped up all week in the house, and she had only recently regained the use (somewhat) of her mauled hand. Peta waved her left hand frantically at the figure coming up the path to the house. She took a few grocery bags with her good hand and blurted that the wolf was awake.

"Is that so?" Nana asked, her voice colored with amusement. "He must be interesting to talk to."

Peta pulled a sour face. "He's a sarcastic sonofa—" she stopped in her tracks when she saw the glare Nana was giving her; Peta laughed nervously. "Well, he technically is…he's a wolf, isn't he?"

"His name is Kiba."

Peta grimaced again. "Who cares? His attitude is pretty much equivalent to a rotten egg."

"And how long have you two talked? You sound like an expert on the poor wolf," Nana said, throwing open the fence before the house.

Peta blushed in embarrassment, and then mumbled: "Only for a few seconds."

"Well, then, give him another chance," Nana smiled a wily grin.

Peta grumbled again, and hoisted all the bags away from Nana with her left hand, making her stagger slightly. As she walked into the kitchen, Ahote's head perked up from his nap, and his tail wagged crazily. Peta laughed at her dog's reaction, and put down the grocery bags to pet him.

It had taken Nana and Peta both to restrain Ahote after he had seen what the wolf had done to his mistress. He had almost lunged at Kiba, but they had locked him in the kitchen until he could be dealt with later. Peta was overjoyed to see that Ahote was no longer snarling or angry—in fact, he acted just like a puppy.

She sighed, giving the black dog a hug; Peta buried her face in the velvety fur, willing herself to forget everything, including one very specifically annoying white wolf.

- -

Kiba's heartbeat had quickened when he had recognized the old woman's footsteps coming towards him. He did not want to speak to her again—she had made him feel oddly, with all the talk of knowing about him and so on. He had never met a human that he could converse clearly to in wolf form previously, and the concept disconcerted him quite a fair bit.

Before he could gather his scattered thoughts, the old woman had entered the room.

"Ah, you are awake…good, good," she muttered to particularly no one, and then busied herself with drawing the rest of the drapes in the room. The entire place was suddenly filled with unwelcome sunny intensity that hurt Kiba's eyes.

"How are you feeling?" she asked, now fluffing up the pillows on the couch, just a few lengths away from his body.

When he didn't reply, the woman simply shrugged.

"Talk when you are ready. I learned that you exchanged words with my granddaughter," she continued, and went on to straighten a particularly crooked painting on the wall. "I did not get the impression that it went well."

"I told her your name. I hope you don't mind," she added thoughtfully and moved to the desk in the corner where she put little papers in order.

_Does it matter whether I mind?_

To his surprise, the old woman nodded. "Yes, but I already did so, so you are right. It is only common courtesy to ask."

Kiba watched her, and finally spoke again. _You are strange._

"I have been branded as strange for many moons, Kiba," she said. "It is nothing new."

They fell silent for a while, and the woman went around the room, fixing knickknacks that were out of place, weird little details that would normally bother no one, except maybe a person who had a very good eye.

"I suggest you treat Peta well," she said as a small note. "When she gets on bad terms with someone, it usually stays that way."

_I will not be here for long,_ was his reply.

"And where will you go?"

_I do not know yet, but that will be solved soon_. Kiba tried to get up from his spot on the couch, only to be given a reproachful look by the elderly human.

"You shouldn't move yet. There is one wound that has not closed, and you'll strain it if you get up," the woman said, and moved away to the door.

_What should I call you?_

She turned around, face placid. "My granddaughter calls me Nana...and until I know you better, that is the name that is available for your use."

And with that, the room was empty again. Kiba sat back down on the couch, feeling like a moment had been ruined—sort of like an anticlimax. His thoughts were quickly consumed by ideas of leaving this human dwelling and starting a search. The problem was that he didn't know where to start—this place looked nothing like where he had…expired.

Actually, now that he thought of it, he had seen no city (the small snippets he had seen, anyway)—for miles, countryside stretched out and away; there wasn't even a hint of metal or cement. The house was built out of wood, and most of the fences were of the same material, although some metal was used for them, he guessed.

Besides, hadn't that crazy girl mentioned it took hours for her to get to the hospital?

Kiba shook his head. This was too confusing. A noise made him look up sharply. It was the girl again.

"Yeah…um…Nana told me to…apologize." The last word was spoken so softly that he had to lean forward to hear it. The air was tense, and the taut atmosphere was shattered when Peta sighed. "Look, something really bad must have happened for you to be beat up like _this_." There was another pregnant pause. "I'm willing to…help…if you'll let me." By this point, her teeth were clenched.

Kiba didn't respond, taking his time to think about what to say. It was generally an awkward place to be in. These people didn't seem to be hostile, like the scientists that had taken Cheza or the hunters that hated wolves. To put it bluntly, he didn't know how to treat them. What if they turned against him, like most humans? What if they were like all the rest?

"Well…yeah. That's what I wanted to say." The human turned to leave, walking away to the doorway.

Kiba watched her go. _I'm going to regret this…_

- -

Peta faced away from the white wolf, feeling a little dejected. _What was I expecting? A confession?_ She sighed and continued her way to the door, until a tingling rushed down her spine, almost like someone was breathing down her nape. Peta stopped cold, completely freaked out.

_Wait._

Peta looked over her shoulder to see the white wolf sitting almost upright, but stopping because of the injury in his back left leg.

_Tell me where I am_.

Her good mood instantly deflated. _Ha, and I thought he was gonna apologize…_ Nonetheless, Peta turned around, and sat down opposite the wolf in the chair she had fallen asleep in previously. "You want to know where you are?"

The wolf nodded slowly, and Peta shrugged.

"Okay. You're in Glenwood Springs, Colorado," she answered, resting her chin on her left palm, and in turn, her elbow on her knee. It seemed to do little to help him, and Peta tried to explain better. "Have you ever heard of the United States?"

The wolf shook his head. Peta exhaled, trying to think of a way that could possibly make her point clear.

"There's a large range of mountains," Peta said, trying to describe the geography. "To the…uh…the west, there's a large ocean. To the south…I think it's south…yeah, to the south, there's a large country called Mexico. To the east, there's another big city called Denver. And if you go north, you hit Canada."

When she finished her very choppy description, he might have been even more confused than before.

"My navigation skills are crappy. You should ask Nana if you want to know. I can only tell you the names," Peta told him, shaking out her right hand to get rid of bothersome pins and needles that had erupted all over her skin.

_You are not very helpful._ Kiba tried to choose his words carefully, but it came out slightly wrong.

"I know, okay? Geez. This is what I get for being nice," Peta mumbled, getting up and nearly killing herself by tripping over her own feet. "Jesus, what is this? Peta's-bad-luck-day?"

- -

She continued grumbling to herself up until the point where Kiba couldn't hear her anymore, and that was quite a distance away. He laid his head on his front paws, mind eddying with the information he had been given, vague as it may be. Kiba shut his golden eyes, trying to forget the ache in his back limb.

Kiba was fairly sick with sitting on the couch continuously, so he made a ginger effort to get up—this time, he succeeded halfway, getting his front paws onto the carpeted floor of the cabin. It felt good to have solid ground under his pads again. Next came the back right foot, and lastly, the left one. Every single movement throbbed and stung, but Kiba would not let himself sit around like some sort of vegetable when he had the chance to get up and not be disturbed.

He finally accomplished moving without hurting too much by hobbling along. It wasn't the most proud stature a wolf could have, and Kiba hated it; he hated the fact that there were people there to witness his moments of weakness. He limped over to the door, and pushed it open forcefully with his nose. The air outside was pleasantly fresh and brisk.

Kiba shuffled his way outside to the porch, and looked around, drinking in every aspect so he could go over it later.

From where he stood, he could see great mountains looming out of the clouds; they looked huge and intimidating, nothing like what he was used to seeing—he had expected towering skyscrapers and slums. Instead, small patches of green gleamed in the morning sunlight like jewels, dazzling his sight. Kiba had never thought that places could look like this if they weren't in Paradise.

Kiba wasn't so sure he was in the same _world_ anymore. He had never heard any of the locations mentioned by that girl—Peta, whatever her name was.

He turned to the right, and was greeted by the sight of a huge paddock; even though there was a lot of space, Kiba could only see two horses and a foal inside the fenced-in area. He could smell many things on the air; there were swine around—that was one of the most obvious scents. Kiba picked them out, one by one. Sheep, mice and a little bit of cat were all present.

_A farm…_ the very thought was something he dreaded. There was lots of prey in this place, and it wasn't a good idea to go roaming on a farm with an empty stomach. Kiba remembered Peta's words in the morning, and decided not to take her up on the threat—at least, not now when he was injured.

"I see you have discovered our livestock." Nana's voice nearly made Kiba stumble forward. Nearly. Instead, Kiba turned around slowly, showing no sign that he had been surprised.

_This is a … large farm._ Again, Kiba's words were few and short, but they seemed to be enough for the moment.

"You could say that," Nana agreed, nodding slowly.

Peta's voice came from behind them, and the door swinging shut closely followed her words. "If you think this is big, you should have seen the other ranch."

Kiba watched her, disinterested; most of his thinking was being actively used to wonder where his friends had ended up to—especially Cheza. Peta walked to the front of the porch, and then sat down on the second step, giving a small sigh.

"Where are you from?" Peta asked, and noticed as the wolf's back stiffened slightly. She sighed, running her fingertips over the hard cover of her cast. She was surprised when Kiba answered, but it was a one worded reply.

_Somewhere. _

They left it at that. The only sound that was now audible was the animals' sounds from around the farm and the often rustling of the wind in the hollow places. The ringing of the phone completely changed the mood—what traces of a mood there was, anyway.

Kiba watched as Peta disappeared into the house; seconds later, the chiming of the virtual bells stopped, and her voice floated out the open window.

"Hello? …Uh, yeah, sure. I'll help. How many? Two? Alright…sure…that bad, huh? Okay. I'll be down first thing in the morning. Sure, Lisa. Over and out."

There was a clacking of plastic on plastic as the phone slid into place again. Peta came outside to the porch again, looking slightly drained.

"What is it?" Nana asked, noticing her granddaughter's anticipating appearance.

"Nothing special. Lisa's had two admittances—they're pretty chopped up, so I have to go down and help tomorrow. Is that okay?" Peta sat herself down again on the porch, putting her head back and closing her eyes.

Kiba blinked, befuddled. Nana was the first to explain to him.

"Lisa is the woman who runs the animal shelter downtown. Peta often helps there."

Kiba nodded slowly, not really understanding the concept of an animal shelter, seeing as he hadn't been to one before. Peta's muffled voice made his senses prickle back into reality.

"She said that they were in really bad shape. Sometimes I just get sick of what people do. Really sick…" Her chin was resting on her knees, and she was speaking with her mouth barely open; it didn't sound like she was all too enthusiastic about going down to this supposed 'animal shelter'.

"Did you have an owner?" Peta asked, and the very idea sent Kiba's hackles into 'pin-needle-straight' mode. _Him_? Have an _owner_? He was a wolf! Nobody owned wolves, and he was proud of that. The question made him think back to Toboe and Blue, and quickly dampened his spirits. Peta knocked her forehead against her knees.

"I'm just asking _all_ the right questions today…"

The rest of the evening was spent in quiet, and Kiba was soon left alone on the couch again; Nana and Peta slept in the upper regions of the house, and the young human wasn't keen on leaving a wolf on the same level with her treasured dog.

His eyes were drooping slowly shut, easily drenching his world in darkness and blocking out the moonlight sifting through the blinds behind the window's glass. The weather outside was still crisp and cool, but not too cold. The injuries still ached with all their vigor, making any moves or the occasional stretch quite painful at times, but Kiba decided to ignore them, like he always did—they'd heal, anyway. The wound wouldn't stay open forever.

Part of him did not want to sleep.

He didn't want to see those frightening dreams again—he didn't want to be plagued by that yawning void.

But the pull of slumber was so powerful, and promised escape from the pain and frustration that was pent up in the wolf's heart.

The internal battle raged on for a few minutes, until Kiba finally gave up and let his body relax.

Sleep had claimed him again.

- -

_**A/n**_: Wow…well, the mood changes a lot in this chapter. I hope you enjoyed it. Thanks to the reviewers: _biggest anime fan, Bells of Requiem, _and_ Caged Bird in Demon Arms. _You guys made my day! Really, truly made my day. I'm not all that satisfied with this chapter, but it's hopefully good enough. Thanks again. Please R&R! : )


	3. Of Bandages and Scarlet

_**Chapter 3**_

"Peta…you must visit the animal shelter, remember?"

Peta turned on her side, groaning. Her arm had been throbbing all night, and she had only managed to get a measly two hours of precious sleep.

"Go 'way," she mumbled, trying to bury her head underneath her pillow so she could keep her eyes away from the blinding sunlight and concurrently avoid Nana's prods. Unfortunately, the latter did not disappear—and would not, she knew, until Nana got what she was aiming for.

"If you don't get up now, I shall let Ahote run amok in your room."

Peta bolted up, completely ignoring her hurting palm. "I'm up."

Nana nodded solemnly, satisfied. "Good. Breakfast is ready."

"What time is it?" Peta blinked and yawned widely, exposing a row of very well taken care of teeth.

"It's about six thirty."

"That's your definition of _morning?_" Peta gawked, now awake. "Lisa wants me down there _ten at the earliest._"

"That's alright. Better safe than sorry."

And with that, Nana drifted out of the room; the old woman always seemed to make smooth—yet swift—exits from conversation, whilst also managing to make people obey her orders. Peta shook her head and tried to run her left hand through her gnarled black hair. Sighing, she dragged herself out of bed and to the bathroom across the hall.

The tiles were cold on her bare feet, but she was hot from becoming tangled in the bed sheets during her valiant attempt to become comfortable. She was still only half awake whilst she washed her face and combed her hair. Peta trudged back to her room where she changed into her walking clothes; a pair of skinny jeans and a loose turtleneck.

She had stepped out of the room when she remembered that she didn't have shoes on her feet. Groaning, Peta turned back to retrieve the required objects; whilst doing so, her foot caught on the edge of the carpet outside her room, and she went sailing—she landed with a quite ungraceful _thump_ on the floor, the breath knocked out of her and broken palm smarting like hell.

Today was going to be a _long_ day…

- -

Kiba was brusquely jerked out of a dream by an unsightly thumping sound that sounded just above his head. He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to dispel the haze of sleep that clouded his head. He looked out the window, and saw the morning mist curling onto the windowsill. It looked fairly chilly outside.

A few curses were projected down the stairs, and Kiba put his head back onto his paws, completely unperturbed. Another few thumps later, the young human girl had appeared at the bottom of the stairs, looking disgruntled and battling with a knot that—he had to admit—looked pretty painful.

She caught sight of him, and put the brush between her teeth. She then occupied her hands with tying up her hair into a ponytail.

"Are you going to eat?" she asked, voice emerging from between clenched teeth.

Kiba shrugged lightly._ I usually eat raw meat—from hunting._

Peta looked slightly appalled at the thought, but she soon came over the idea. "Would you mind…dog food? I mean, I have Ahote's food in the pantry."

_I don't think I'd particularly enjoy that._

Peta nodded numbly, and shot a sidelong glance at the kitchen door. "Well…uh…I'm going to eat. If you'd like to follow, I can see if Nana would spare some bacon for you."

Kiba stopped himself from scrunching up his nose in distaste, but a small corner of his mind reminded him that he, too, had once been fed like the black dog—and besides, he hadn't eaten in…actually, he didn't know how long it had been. As if to testify to the fact, his stomach gave a monstrous rumble.

"I guess you should have something," Peta said. It was obvious she was trying not to laugh. She swung open the door to the kitchen, allowing Kiba to walk in before her; to his annoyance, he was still very much limping, and no matter how hard he tried to balance himself normally, it failed in one way or another.

The old human had been bent over the stove when they had entered the kitchen, and she did not budge from her spot as she greeted them.

"Hello, Peta, Kiba."

"G'morning, Nana," Peta replied, and then went over to her grandmother. She threw an uncertain look in Kiba's direction, and then bent over to whisper something to the old human. Nana drew herself up instantly, looking like she had forgotten something important.

"Only for today." Was the woman's answer, and then Nana set out Peta's breakfast on the table. Kiba smelled the crisp scent of bacon frying on the pan. He couldn't deny that hunger was starting to blossom from deep in the pit of his stomach, but he also didn't want to reveal his ability to raise his illusion just yet although Nana seemed well acquainted with it.

"Peta." Nana's voice had some sort of gravity to it, and the girl's gaze immediately was switched from her meal to her grandmother. Kiba sat on his haunches, growling mentally as his wound gave a twinge in protest. The old human's voice was speaking in that outlandish tongue again, and Kiba felt alienated and angry at himself for not being able to understand.

But, in a way, it sounded familiar, for some reason.

"Alright…" Peta gritted, looking extremely irritated. "How many days?"

"A week," Nana said, now turning back to the stove.

Peta's jaw set into a tight knot, and Kiba saw her make an effort to eat. He, on the other hand, was still very much and truly hungry. Like a small ray of hope, a plate was set before him on the floor; he looked up to see Nana stooped over him, apron fastened in place.

"I hope this will be enough for today," she said, standing straight again. "Peta will show you a place where hunting is allowed tomorrow."

Kiba sniffed lightly at the dark, curled object on the plate, and was instantly hit with a most tantalizing aroma. He lifted his stare, only to find that Nana had turned back to the sink; gingerly, deciding that he had no other choice, he took a hesitant bite out of the food. It tasted sort of spicy, but he concluded that it wasn't that bad, after all.

_But you won't be staying here for long…_a little voice reminded him. He didn't really know where to go, but he was sure there were loose ends somewhere; Kiba wasn't sure _this_ was all an elaborate dream. Turning away these thoughts for now, he turned back to chewing at the surprisingly tasty meat.

His ears pricked backwards as Peta's chair scraped the floor when she got up.

"I'll be going now."

- -

The first thing she was aware of was a steady beeping sound; it penetrated the depths of her mind and brought her back from what seemed like a horribly deep and uncomfortable sleep. The next feeling that was returned to her was touch; her limbs felt immobile and leaden, and there were bandages around her throat, which in turn, ached as well. She opened her eyes, their lids feeling heavy—the world blurred dangerously before coming into sharp focus.

The next thing she heard was a human's voice.

"She's up, Doc!" it sounded like an exclamation of joy. "We saved her!"

"BPM is measured at seventy two."

"Good, good."

More blinking, more focusing. She was aware that she was in a comfortable place; her body was warm, but there was a sore spot on her right paw. She was soon able to discern it as an IV needle, and it was not welcome.

"What about her partner? He was in much worse condition."

Her heart skipped a beat, and a name floated in her mind, like a wraith that could not be waved off.

_Hige_.

Her gaze roved the room, and it came to a stop when she found a white outline standing only a few yards away. She brought her eyes upwards, and looked closely at the human woman's face. The human had her brown hair in a bob cut, and her eyes were a deep green. They shifted towards her, and the half-wolf jerked away slightly.

"Don't worry now," the human told her, kneeling by her cushion. So, that's where she was. She was on a _cushion_. How long had it been since she had been surrounded by the comfort of human life? Absently, she registered the human being stroking her head.

"You're a tough cookie."

The words were a compliment, but she still could not find peace. What had happened to Hige? Was he alright? The humans had said he was in worse condition.

"Dr. Lisa, you should see the other one," a voice said from behind them, and the brown haired human stood, notepad now in her hands.

A bell rang in the distance, and the human now known as Dr. Lisa perked up, looking considerably happier. Footsteps sounded in the room—they were significantly quieter than Dr. Lisa's, so she guessed this human was wearing boots or rubber soled shoes.

"Peta! You came at the correct time."

"Oh, hey, Lisa. What d'you have today?"

"There's one of them. She's tame, from what we can tell, but when she came in here, she looked like she had just taken part in an all-out brawl. I swear, our cases just keep getting worse."

"Jesus…"

There was another sound of rustling, and she was met with a different pair of human eyes, this one being a bright brown. She finally gave into the relief that the cushion offered, and laid back down, eyes still not closed. Another hand stretched out and slightly fondled the fur on her head. There was a faint—but familiar—scent around her hand, and she struggled to pinpoint its identity.

"Where'd you find her?" asked the younger one—Peta had been her name.

"Just a little ways out from my house. God, you should have seen the place, Peta. It looked like someone had taken a can of red paint and thrown it all over the rocks," Dr. Lisa said, closing her eyes and shaking her head. A green tinge colored her face. "The back of my pickup needs to be washed now. I could barely pick them up. I thought they were gonna fall apart."

"Was there anyone around?" Peta asked, letting her hand fall to her side. The half-wolf caught another whiff of the scent, and her mind burst with recognition.

_Kiba! She smells like Kiba!_

But how was that possible? It wasn't. Not really, anyway—but the last few months of her life had been the most unbelievable that she had ever lived through—so who was to say that the impossible wasn't possible?

"No, absolutely no one. Her wounds were all inflicted by what looks like fangs; but the other one's and her injuries don't consist with each other—they looked pretty bonded to me. The male was lying on top of her, kind of like as if she was his mate," Dr. Lisa said, looking thoughtful. "Was there anything strange up at your place?"

Peta's expression changed for a moment, but then she answered. "Nah…nothing special. Just Ahote doing his stupid stuff."

Dr. Lisa laughed goodheartedly, and then turned around to face the door. "Come join me in the other room when you're done, okay? Wash your hands, too."

"Sure thing," Peta said, and watched as the doctor exited the room.

The human girl sighed when the door swung shut behind her friend. The half-wolf, still sitting on the cushion, tried to get a good look of her face. The girl may have fooled the doctor, but her little slipup did not go unnoticed by the patient.

- -

_Why didn't I say anything?_ Peta thought to herself, frustrated at her belated reaction to Lisa's question. She clenched her left fist irritably, trying not to aggravate her right hand—which had already been stirred up and hurt by driving. Turning the steering wheel of a car with a broken palm was not, for the most part, pleasant.

She looked towards the injured animal below her, and slowly observed her; the dog's neck was wrapped in white bandages which were slightly stained pink—she didn't even want to picture the wound underneath.

Peta was reminded of Kiba back at her house—for a moment, she wondered what he was doing (or, more specifically, what Nana was doing to him…)—and then her thoughts turned back to the the animal before her. Her fur was a deep, black color—much like Ahote's, but much more soot colored; it looked worn and feverish. And her eyes, as much as Kiba's eyes were golden, were blue—clear and azure.

A cramp of pain from her palm brought Peta back to reality, and what was happening. Hurrying, she shuffled away and hung her coat on a rack close by the door. She washed her left hand until it practically sparkled under a current of cold, rushing water from the tap. When it smelled of chlorine and soap, she was satisfied that it was sanitized, and wiped herself dry with a towel.

_How do you know Kiba?_

For a second, Peta thought that the female voice was a figment of her imagination. Apprehension dawning on her, she turned from her place in the sink, left hand latched to the counter, and faced the injured dog. When she found that the wounded animal was looking back at her with intelligent intensity, she stomped her foot.

"Shit. What _is it_ with me and talking wolves?" she murmured, feeling as if the entire world had taken a spin towards the crazy side. The blue eyed dog sat back, apparently pleased with her reaction.

"What do you want?" Peta said dryly, turning her attention back to the now-speaking canine.

_Exactly what I asked. You have Kiba's scent on your hand—it's barely there, but you still smell like him._

Peta was pleasantly surprised. This one spoke more than Kiba. "Yeah…he is back at my house. My grandma and I found him…he was pretty…beaten up, if you could put it that way."

_All of us were. That madman was merciless,_ the dog snorted, looking away with abhorrence that Peta was sure was not intended for her. And then, Peta absorbed the meaning of the words.

"Wait, wait, wait, wait. Rewind. 'All of us'? There's more of you?!" Peta asked, feeling breathless.

_Only two more, from what I know,_ the dog answered shifting to a more comfortable position on the cushion. The IV needle seemed to be bothering her—well, of course it would. Who'd like to have a needle in them?

"Two more? So the other injured dog is really your buddy?" Peta asked, slightly agog. The female dog nodded.

_He's a wolf, not a dog. I am half wolf myself, _she said, yawning widely. _Why am I so sleepy?_

"They've probably given you sedatives," Peta said, now kneeling beside the dog so she could be closer. "Lisa's always really careful, so you shouldn't be scared of being mistreated. How did you end up so badly injured?"

The hybrid's expression darkened, and her blue eyes narrowed to dangerous slits. _It's a long and very bloody story._

Peta was taken aback by the answer. There was silence for a while, until she decided that she should break the ice, somewhat. "Well…I'm Peta," she offered, and the canine looked back to her.

_I heard. I'm Blue._

Peta gave a wan smile. "It's nice to meet you."

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door, and Dr. Lisa stepped in, green eyes clouded with confusion. "You okay? I heard you talking to someone."

"Yeah, just exchanging a few words with your patient," Peta said, standing up.

"I see," Dr. Lisa answered, giving her a somewhat curious look. "Come, I'll show you the other guy. Maybe you can help us with changing his bandages."

Peta heard Blue move on the cushion, and she felt remorse towards her new acquaintance. Blue must have been worried about her friend. Peta tuned into her surroundings, now listening to Dr. Lisa describing the male wolf's injuries.

"While our girl over there looks like she practically had her throat ripped out," Dr. Lisa observed, her voice taking on a scientific tone, "her companion had his entire abdominal region torn up so badly he needed stitches. He wasn't even conscious for most of it. I just wish I knew _who_'d done this."

Peta ruffled her hair, trying to save what pieces of her sanity she had left. "We'll probably never find out. But he's alive, isn't he?"

"Just barely," Dr. Lisa said, nodding. "Let's get going."

Peta heard Blue's voice in a small recess of her mind, whispering something that sounded like helpful advice.

_His name is Hige._

Peta was a little reluctant to leave Blue alone, but she eventually followed the veterinarian outside the room and into another enclosed area; this one was far more equipped in the medical sense. There was a large mattress in the center of the space; a large wolf was lying lengthwise in it. His fur was the color of brown sugar. His chest was barely rising, and the beeping of the heart monitor chilled Peta to the bone, as it overpowered the sound of the wolf's breathing. Bandages swathed everything from his chest bone and down, only stopping where his hind legs began. A dark crimson color was staining the white gauze, creating a stark and frightening contrast.

"And he's cleaned up now," Dr. Lisa said, looking on sorrowfully. "I could barely see his coat underneath all the blood it had accumulated. We even had to shave some off of his left side because it had crusted over."

"So, we need to change the bandages?" Peta asked, her voice a little unsteady. Her friend nodded an affirmative, and set down her notepad; there was a snap as she slapped on some latex gloves, and she handed one to Peta, to put on her good hand.

Following Dr. Lisa's suit, Peta put on the glove and then bent over the injured wolf, scared that she might disturb his already fragile breathing pattern.

"This is about to get dirty," Dr. Lisa murmured, and started unraveling the bandages.

Peta tried not to look away as they cleaned the gaping wounds.

_What exactly happened to them?_

- -

Nana finished washing the plates, and put away her towel. Kiba had long taken his leave from the kitchen, so she had been left alone with her thoughts for a extended time. The day had started off dreary, and Peta's absence only made the house less lively—things were always…noisy with her granddaughter around.

Nana looked towards the clock. It read two past ten. Peta must have reached the animal shelter by now. She remembered Peta's broken hand, and clicked her tongue in disapproval. It would have been a certain hassle to get to the shelter with a hand in a cast.

For the second time, she wondered where Kiba had gone to. Now that she thought about it, Nana had not seen Ahote around, either. Cursing her faltering vigilance, she stormed out of the kitchen, apron aflutter. She turned sharply around the corner, hoping that nothing had happened between the two.

A testament that proved her statement completely wrong came flying through the door as a snarl and scrabbling of claws. Nana doubled her quick pace and jogged onto the porch, where she saw something that made her heart quail.

Ahote was crouching down in a defensive position, growling and hackles raised like dangerous spikes. Opposite him, Kiba was snarling, revealing a disturbing array of gleaming teeth. Nana felt her heart skip a beat at the scene.

"Ahote!" she shouted, and the black dog's head snapped up, completely broken from his trance. "What are you doing?! Come, Ahote. Come!"

The dog slunk back to his owner head bowed and tail between his hind legs. He sat at Nana's side, looking gloomy and disappointed. Nana put a tanned hand around his collar, and fastened her fingers there with a tight grip. She looked up to meet Kiba's gaze.

"Ahote is a dog, and he doesn't know any better than to protect his land and what he considers home. But you…I had expected much more from you, fanged one," Nana said. The words had come out fast, and it was too late to judge them. "Please refrain from meaningless fighting." She gripped Ahote's collar more firmly and pulled him back when he started to advance again.

Kiba went back to his normal stance, now scrutinizing her with a cold, golden eye.

- -

Peta sat back, content with the fruits of her labor. Hige was now completely cleaned and sanitized (as far as she could see) and was breathing with much more ease. She felt great relief at his relaxed position, and thought about Blue—she'd probably be happy that her comrade was doing better. Peta had had a hard time keeping her breakfast down while looking at the cuts, claw rakes and bite marks that were scattered all over the wolf's body.

Dr. Lisa had left only a few minutes earlier, going to tend a cat and her kittens that had been thrown in a trash can and abandoned at the edge of a highway.

She could hardly understand how humans could do these cruel deeds. They were wholly uncalled for and entirely evil in intention from her viewpoint. If you are going to abuse your dog, why have one in the first place?

Sighing, Peta threw away a bloody glove in a 'hazardous waste' disposal trash can and sat down on one of the chairs in the room for a few moments. She didn't really enjoy working at the animal shelter, but knowing that she was helping out made the feeling go away just a little bit.

Peta got up tiredly and trekked her way back to Blue's room. She opened the door to find Blue in the same position as when she had left, eyes wide open and watchful.

"Hi there," Peta said, shutting the door behind her. "Your friend is doing a lot better."

Blue visibly relaxed, and let out a small sigh. _That's…good to know._

"He's important to you, huh?" Peta said, smiling. She sat down on the floor, cross legged. "I'd like to find someone like that one day."

_He's alright. A little gluttonous,_ Blue said, quirking an imaginary eyebrow. _Why am I telling you this?_

"Dunno. Why are you?" Peta asked, shrugging.

Silence reigned through the room, and they both noticed the ticking of the clock and the steady beat that the heart monitor kept. The daylight swung this way and that through the window, changed around by the direction and size of the clouds.

_Do you have any idea if we're near Freeze City?_ Blue asked, taking Peta by surprise.

"I had this conversation with Kiba yesterday," Peta informed her. "All of you are in a place called Glenwood Springs—and Glenwood Springs is in the American state of Colorado."

Blue's canine face crumpled in confusion. _Co…lorado?_

"You can't be serious…" Peta muttered. "You guys have really never heard of the US?" Blue shook her head, prompting another question from Peta. "Then, where are _you_ from?"

Blue settled down into a more comfortable position, and spoke in a tone so melancholy that Peta practically felt her heart withering.

_It all started with a flower, or so I heard…_

- -

__

_**A/n**_: And there you go, yet another chapter. It was a weekend present for you guys, whoever's reading this fanfiction. Anyways, I hope I've kept everyone in character.

**Shout-Outs!**

**Caged Bird in Demon Arms:** Oh, I've got plans for that. It's already been mapped out in my head, so don't worry about it. More of Peta's freaking out is to come. : )

**Motocross Zombie:** Really? That's an awesome coincidence! It's such a beautiful place. I'd love to visit someday! I'm glad you enjoy the story.

**Bells of Requiem:** Yep, I've already sent you a reply, but I also forgot to add something in it—I really do detest self inserts. I know for sure that I wouldn't know how to react to the story's events unless I was _really, truly_ there. And I doubt I'd be there, because it's a story. Most people write down the way they'd _want_ to react, or the way they _think_ they'd act in the wake of events. I'd rather just stick with my OCs, thank you. ; )


	4. Earthly Worries

_**Chapter 4**_

Kiba watched as Nana walked back into the house, Ahote closely following her, albeit unwillingly. His upper lip curled when he thought about what had happened—he had come outside for a breath of fresh air, and the dog had apparently thought he had been stalking the sheep in the pen nearby. Kiba let out a snort and continued to walk around the farm, taking in scents and sights for his mental archive and map of the premises.

He could feel that tonight was a full moon—the energy was building up in him slowly, and even now, his wounds were healing faster; his back leg still throbbed, but it was a dull pain and no longer hindered Kiba's movements severely.

The farm largely consisted of wooden buildings and fences, and large paddocks. After a few minutes of wandering around aimlessly, he came to a bigger pen than the others, and realized it was the one where he had seen the two horses. A sign hung forlornly on the wood, scarcely legible.

It read: '_Talking Picture/Den and Nahimana.'_

One of the equines was grazing close to gate's entrance, quietly munching on a few pieces of grass. It was of a dark grey color with white socks stretching just above its ankles. Soon, the horse noticed him observing it, and raised its well defined head.

_Well, well. What do we have here? Very long it has been since I have seen one of yer kin._ Its voice was male and he rolled his 'r's, giving him a bizarre accent.

_You know about wolves?_ Kiba asked, sort of interested. He wondered why the horse wasn't scared of him—livestock usually behaved erratically around wolves; that he remembered from his early years.

The horse rolled his shoulders with a lackadaisical attitude. _'Course I do. When ye've been to as many places as I, ye've seen loads of things—one of them bein' wolves. _

Kiba was slightly puzzled. Did that mean there were more wolves out there? The only wolves he knew of were the ones in the pack he had formed, but they were now dispersed—he wasn't even sure what had really become of them. Curiosity piqued, he questioned the horse again.

_So…there are more wolves?_

The horse gave a snort of laughter, and shook his head. _More wolves? The world's chock full of 'em! _

The answer made Kiba start. _You mean…there are others?_ His voice was barely a whisper—he didn't really know what to feel. If anything, this was proof that he truly _wasn't _home, if you could call endless nomadic treks and places that changed faster than a wolf shedding in summer 'home'. Sure, he had known that he wasn't in the same place as before—he had been in Paradise, and this certainly did _not_ look like Paradise.

But…what if he was in an entirely new _world_?

The horse gave him another 'are you an idiot?' look and granted him a pokerfaced answer. _Boy, where've you been? _

Kiba wasn't listening.

- -

Peta bustled around the clinic, disinfecting thermometers, putting medicines into cabinets according to alphabetical order, and keeping herself busy. Blue had fallen asleep because of the sedatives, but she had completed her gruesome tale.

Peta couldn't get her mind off of Blue's recounting of her pack's adventures and sorrows. She couldn't get over the fact that they were possibly from an alternate dimension; or maybe the future, or the past—whichever one it was, their injuries were proof that Blue hadn't been lying. Peta distractedly placed a bottle on a shelf, and Dr. Lisa gave a small cry.

"Whoa! No laxatives on the anti-inflammatory category, Peta," the vet said, pulling away Peta's hand. The girl snapped back to reality.

"Huh?" she looked at the bottle in her hand. "Oh…_oh_! I'm sorry," Peta apologized hastily, putting the medicine where it belonged. "Sorry. My brain was somewhere else."

"Yeah, it's obvious," Dr. Lisa said, arching an eyebrow. Before she could continue, the pager on her waist chimed out, curtly cutting her sentence short. She looked at it, reading the message. She gave a sigh, and looked up at Peta. "You sure you can clean up here? I've just been called across the street to the OR of the animal clinic. Maya's going to be in here if you need help."

"Oh, yeah, I'll be fine," Peta said, eyes still distant. Dr. Lisa gave her another observational look and strode out of the room. Peta sighed, and looked at the medicine she was currently holding.

"Pain killer," she murmured, and surveyed the room until she found the appropriate cupboard for the drug. Peta put it in its designated place, and finished up by cleaning the room and swabbing the last of the metal medical equipment.

When she was done (which seemed a million hours later), Peta opened the door to Blue's room to check if she was alright. The hybrid was still sleeping soundly, and her intravenous diet was still dripping. Peta swung the door shut, and threw a glance towards the window. The sky was starting to darken.

_Has it really been that long?_ Peta wondered, and then looked at the watch on her wrist. It really _had_ been a long time. Her stomach hastily reminded her that she hadn't eaten anything substantial for lunch, so she went searching for something to chow on.

- -

Kiba watched sullenly as the sun sank beneath the crooks of the mountain, leaving only a few fleeting rays to dance on the blades of grass. The horse, (who now had the name of Talking Picture, or more fondly known as 'Den'), had gone on to ramble about his different homes, and Kiba had sauntered off, completely bored by the concept of listening to Den's unending biography.

He was now drifting around the house, looking for interesting things that would capture his attention. As the sunset went on, his injuries felt better, and pained him almost to an indiscernible degree, so he had no problem moving around now.

The house seemed empty—well, it really wasn't; it was just that Nana was being so quiet he could hardly hear her; besides, Kiba didn't really want to talk to her after being jumped by that stupid dog. So, instead, he explored the staircase, winding his way upstairs.

The floor was carpeted, and easy to walk on whilst also staying unnoticed. He soon came to a hall; there were four bedrooms to choose from, and one bathroom. He first just walked around the staircase, observing the decoration in the wood and the paintings on the walls.

Kiba soon came to a room which was only lightly decorated. The walls were a subtle beige, and the bed had wooden posts—above the bed, something was hanging, but he couldn't really make out what 

it was. It looked like some sort of a charm—a wide, wooden pendant had strings running through its circular space, looking something akin to a spider web. Beneath it, small bunches of tied feathers fluttered in the breeze of the open window.

Kiba exited the room, thinking it quite plain, and moved onto the next one. It wasn't much to write home about—it looked like a guestroom, so he soon found himself walking out and peeking into the third room.

And, as many people say, 'third time's the charm', and indeed, he seemed to find something that stirred his interest.

This room's walls were also beige, and the bed was plain. There was a large wardrobe of dark wood in one corner, and there were balcony doors on the farthest wall of the room, looking out onto the paddocks. Kiba was sure that if he looked closer, he'd be able to spot Den somewhere in the greenery; but it wasn't a very compelling subject, so he stepped into the room instead.

There was a nightstand next to the bed, and on the nightstand was something any normal human would have—a picture, and a few assorted items that fell under the category of junk. Nonetheless, Kiba wanted to look at the picture, so he walked up to it.

Smiling up from the frame was what looked like a family—a noticeably younger Peta was grinning widely, and hugging her, lifting her off the ground and into the air, was a brown haired man. Beside the grown man was a young woman with her black hair drawn back into a braid. She wasn't smiling all that much, but it was obvious that she was happy. Her tawny eyes were sparkling with gaiety—the reason, Kiba did not know; of course he wouldn't know.

He turned away from the photograph and walked around the room. When he backed up against the wardrobe (not intentionally, either), his weight seemed to upset something that was balanced on top of it, and it came thunking down on the floor, missing his head by a hairsbreadth.

Kiba jumped away from the object, but leaned closer to observe it eventually. It looked like a leather bound book, but there was no title on it; it only had a black string tied around it—its pages looked withered and the book was stuffed with little notes that stuck out from the sides, top and bottom.

_You're snooping._

The little voice startled him out of his hide, and it only took a few moments to realize that it was right. He stepped over it and departed from the room, his thoughts now completely centered on the full moon that was rising outside.

- -

Peta had finally gotten her lunch—which you could basically call dinner, because it was night out. She knew Nana would probably be worried, but she couldn't leave without locking up the shelter. Some of the animals in the kennels might have needed some things, so she made a final prowl around the site, checking if things were in good shape.

When she made her way back to Dr. Lisa's office, she found a large sticky note on the door. She eagerly unstuck it from the wood and scanned it over quickly.

'_Hey, Peta—by the time you read this, I'll probably be at home, but I'd like you to do one favor. Check up on the brown dog that was brought in today and change his IV bag. There should be one next to his bed; if you can't find it, just look in the cabinets. I've labeled it "Brown's Food". Sorry I couldn't tell you earlier. _

_See you around,_

_Lisa Sheffield.' _

Peta sighed and crumpled the note, stuffing it into her pocket. She wound her way through the hall and eventually came to Hige's room. She opened up the door and walked in—the room was dark, so it was hard to see, but the white tiles gave off a small luminosity thanks to the shine from the moon outside.

Peta looked around, under, and in every niche possible that Hige's IV bag could possibly be hidden, but when she found nothing, she settled to rifling through the cabinets until her hands hit on the correct bag. When she drew it out, she saw that there was tape on it; written on the tape in black marker was the sentence: 'Brown's Food'.

Peta shook her head, muttering about the absolute inconvenience of the bag's placement and for what seemed like the thousandth time that day, snapped on a single latex glove. She gently turned the current IV off, and changed the bags; Peta slowly turned the drip on again, and sighed in relief when the action did not wake up the wolf.

She turned away and disposed of the drained bag and took off the glove. Behind her, Peta thought she heard Hige stirring, but ascertained it was her imagination and started drawing the blinds in the dark room so the morning sunlight wouldn't wake up the wolf before necessary tomorrow morning.

Peta suddenly felt alone in the animal shelter; the night was completely silent, except for the stray sounds of the wind, an occasional brave cricket and the animals breathing, there was nothing else audible. She tried to keep the horror movie scenarios out of her head as she continued cleaning up.

Peta was repugnantly reminded of 'Pet Semetery', which one of her old friends had pressed her into watching. She had absolutely hated the concept of the movie and the book along with it—not to mention that she had nightmares for almost four weeks after watching it. Peta shuddered when she thought about animals' reanimated corpses, so it wasn't surprising that she nearly shot through the roof when she heard Blue hustle about in the room adjacent to them.

Trying to calm her breathing, which was coming in annoyingly short gasps, she made herself walk to Blue's room. She opened the door cautiously, only to find the hybrid looking up at her through the gloom. Blue looked…energized, for some reason. Her fur seemed to shine in the dim glow of the room. Still feeling a little shaky, Peta spoke.

"Did you have a good sleep?"

_Yeah, I did…you smell of fear. _

It wasn't a bunch of comforting words, it was a statement of fact. It was at that moment Peta realized how stupid she must have looked, so she tried to hold back her laughter and failed. _She must think I'm insane,_ Peta thought, and shook her head.

"It was just me and my overactive imagination. I make myself scared sometimes," Peta informed her. "I was thinking about a horror film…"

_Ah. I see._ Blue set her head down on her front paws again, growling in agitation when she aggravated the IV's needle. _When will __**this**__ come off?_ She emphasized her words by thrusting forward her right paw.

Peta looked at it, as if it were some alien item, and then was shaken into normal thoughts. "Oh…that? That's probably coming off tomorrow, although I don't think Lisa's going to let you have solid foods for a long time. Especially Hige—with the wounds he's got, he should be living off the IV and soup for more than a week."

_He's not going to be happy when he hears that,_ Blue sighed, and yawned widely. She shook her head, making her black ears flop about. _Damn sedatives._

"Yeah, they're not very pleasant. Just hang on until tomorrow," Peta said, trying to console her. "I know it's uncomfortable."

_Do you?_

"As a matter of fact…yes, but anyways. I'll be going now, okay? Please don't let your friend freak out when he wakes up. I'm not in the mood for another 'you're in Colorado' explanation," Peta said, yawning herself. "I'll be back tomorrow, most likely."

_Okay._

Peta turned away to leave, and shut the door quietly behind her, not locking it. She didn't know about Blue's intentions, but Peta was not scared of letting her have free range of the shelter. She seemed responsible and well-kept together, and Peta was almost certain of the fact that she wouldn't do anything to harm the animals in the kennel.

The night air was biting but refreshing, and Peta made her way briskly towards her car. As she got into the battered old machine, she wished that she had a motorcycle. Peta sighed as she turned the ignition.

Now was not the time to think of such things.

- -

Blue found herself unable to sleep; she constantly shifted about, nearly mad with worry about Hige. She knew that he was alright—Peta had told her that his condition was stable, but didn't everyone worry about a loved one when they were hurt?

As if to answer her thoughts, a voice entered her mind, insecure and groggy with sleep.

_Blue…?_

_Hige!_ She barked, letting him know that she was across him. Blue got up to her feet, and snarled with impatience when the IV needle encumbered the movement of her right paw. She brought her jaws down on the plastic, and chewed right through the tube; she then proceeded to pull the needle out of her paw with her teeth. Blue ran to the door hurriedly, even though her steps wavered, she pushed it open, silently thanking Peta for leaving it unlocked.

Blue found herself in a long, marble hallway; she put her nose to the ground and took a small sniff of the floor—the smell of the entire place was overwhelming altogether; there was the scent of antiseptics, dogs, cats, rabbits, and a hundred other things that were too merged together to pick out separately.

She soon picked up a scent that stood out of all the others, and followed it eagerly until it led her to another door—which, too, was unlocked. Blue pushed it open eagerly and trotted into the room. The wolf on the bed craned his head upwards.

_Blue?_

_In the flesh,_ she replied, nuzzling his snout eagerly with hers. _How are you feeling?_

_Sore…really sore,_ Hige replied, wincing just a bit. _Isn't it a full moon, though?_

_Yeah, you're lucky that it is a full moon; you weren't in such good shape before,_ Blue told him, now licking his cheek.

_I can sort of remember that,_ Hige said, smacking his lips as his senses returned to him full force. _Where are the others?_

_There's lots to tell you,_ Blue sighed, burying her nose in the fur in his neck. _But we've got all night, haven't we?_

_You're being too suggestive for your own good,_ Hige chuckled, inching to sit up.

_I can assure you, that's the last thing on my mind,_ Blue rebuked him, nudging him hardly with her nose. _You'll find that a few things are different here—_

_Uh, Blue?_ He was looking pretty serious, so Blue paused in her explanation, puzzled.

_What?_

_I'm hungry._

- -

Kiba sat outside, looking at the rising moon. He could feel the elation coursing through his veins, caused by the power of the full moon; the olden link between the wolves and the lunar phases still was the same in the place, it seemed, and it was a comforting fact. Kiba remembered the last time he had seen a full moon; it had been one of the happiest moments of his life, even though everything he held dear was in jeopardy.

Maybe it had been the influence of the full moon - he didn't care. The feeling had been there, and it had been genuine. If he could grasp an inkling of it again, he'd be more than grateful.

He made his ears swivel backwards, and when he heard nothing threatening, he lifted his muzzle to the moon, and took a deep breath.

And though it may sound undeniably cliché and overused, his despair and loss came pouring out in one bone chilling howl that echoed across the small plain below—it made Den look up from his grazing, and all the animals on the farm fell still, rapt in an unseen spell. Inside the kitchen, Ahote stood erect, his instincts tingling with foreboding.

The world slowed down to a single, clairvoyant moment, and the arms of the clock within the house hesitated before continuing their endless ticking journey, counting into infinity and driving the shades of the dead insane with eternity.

- -

Peta closed the door of the car before freezing in her tracks as the wind carried a haunting sound to her ears.

_Howling? Could it be…?_

Peta walked swiftly around the familiar territory around the farm, trying to pinpoint the source of the unsettling sound. Her boots were soft amongst the grass, and Peta drew her jacket closer around her body to ward off the freeze of the night air. She soon found the person—wolf, actually—she had been looking for, sitting on a protruding piece of earth that stuck up awkwardly.

"What are you doing?" her voice left nothing but sad remains of the previously mystic atmosphere, and he twisted around to get a good look of her.

_Nothing in particular. It's a full moon._

"Uh…okay," Peta said, not really sure why that mattered. The look on her face screamed 'so what if it's a full moon?' Kiba sighed and stretched out; she arched an eyebrow at his well being, his injuries no longer visible. He had also discarded the bandages.

_The full moon recharges us, if you will have it that way. It heals wolves…something like a brief moment of euphoria. _Kiba sat back, hoping that she understood.

Peta blinked. "That's the longest sentence you've ever directed at me."

Reciprocating her answer was silence, and Peta berated herself fiercely for making him quiet yet again. She was too immersed in her thoughts to see Kiba observing her diligently, and his reaction when Blue's smell reached his nostrils.

"What are you staring at?" she asked, finally aware of his gaze practically boring a hole through her head.

_You smell…funny._

"Well, that's just a lovely compliment," Peta said, rolling her eyes. "Let me guess—you picked up Blue's scent on my sleeves." She guessed that she was right, and continued with her sentence. "Yeah; she's fine, and so is your buddy Hige. I didn't talk to him, though."

Kiba's eyes widened ever so slightly, and then he looked relieved, she supposed, and she was pleased that she had managed to pass on the news. His voice disrupted her train of thoughts yet _again_.

_Are you going to the animal shelter tomorrow?_

"Yeah…"

_Bring me with you._

- -

Kiba watched as her jaw dropped in utter surprise.

"Take you…with me?" she repeated, and he merely nodded. "But…I can't really walk about with a dog that's actually a wolf—besides, you're more than twice the size of _any_ dog breed around! If an officer sees me with you, they'll throw me in jail! It's illegal!"

He didn't stop to delve into her final sentence, and tried not to get angry as she prattled on and on. Kiba wanted to know how Blue and Hige had gotten there—what they remembered, what had happened after they separated—and above all, what they would do now. When Kiba tuned into his surroundings again, Peta was still speaking. He finally put a stop to her chatter with a cryptic statement.

_I will be able to come._

"Oh, sure you will," Peta snorted, now crossing her hands over her chest awkwardly as her cast got in the way of the indignant gesture. "You'll just magically turn into—"

Peta's voice came to a halt, and her eyes widened until her brows were hidden in her unruly, left sweeping fringe. Her mouth moved, but no sound came out. He knew that her eyes were now seeing his illusion, and this was only the expected reaction.

Her hands dropped to her sides, and she just continued to stare at him.

Finally, Peta made a movement and plopped herself down on the ground, eyes still fixed upon Kiba. Her voice was hollow when she spoke.

"Well, I'll be damned."

- -

_**A/n:**_ Yes! Two chapters in two days! I'm proud of myself. XD The gears in the noggin aren't stopping any time soon, but school _is _resuming tomorrow, and I hate to think that it's the end of the weekend. But there will be another weekend and another, so updates _will_ come. : )

**Shout-outs!**

**Caged Bird in Demon Arms-** Blue sure hasn't heard of Colorado. But they'll all get used to the idea sooner or later. I'd like to read your story, although I admit, I love OCs, if they're well written. Well, here's the update, and thank you very much for putting me in your favorites. : )

**Motocross Zombie-** Ah, you will see how the rest of the characters will come into play. But, I do assure you, that everything will come in its own good time. I just tend to take things slow. That's cool! Racing, that is. I love riding on motorcycles, although I've never tried dirtbikes/motocross. I think I will…someday. XD

**iwalkinthelight-** Well, you've got your explanation right here. XD But it was partially because Kiba was cranky, Ahote was overprotective, and that wolves and dogs generally don't get along. And thank you, I'm glad you like the story. : )

**biggest anime fan-** Yes, I seem to be lazy to login sometimes too, but I usually end up doing it anyway. XD Now you know what Kiba is going to do. Poor Peta—her life has completely gone to the dogs (bad pun).

**Bells of Requiem-** Nope, I've never worked in an animal shelter, but someday I know I probably will. It's mostly due to the fact that the animal shelters where I live are decrepit, abandoned, or don't exist. I love learning about animals, and I constantly spew random facts when something in the conversation reminds me about it. :P My family is particularly surprised at the facts I've gathered over the years. XD Congratulations on working in the shelter! You go help those animals! : )


	5. Without A Trace

_**WARNING: CONTROVERSIAL MATERIAL BELOW.**_

_**ALSO:**_ Some coarse language used in this chapter. You may also not like what is shown later on, so just telling you. :P

_**2**__**nd**__** WARNING:**_ I'm a true sap, and there's a pretty cutesy scene between Peta and Ahote.

_**You have been warned, fair reader!**_

_**Chapter 5**_

Peta lay in her bed, looking up at the ceiling, and thinking about what she had seen earlier. Her mind was trying to convince her that it was a trick of the light—that it wasn't real. Yet, there he had been: tall, dark haired, and blue eyed, and standing in front of her as if it were perfectly normal for wolves to turn into humans.

With a muttered curse, Peta turned on her side, only to jolt back to her original position because of her cast. She remembered how her mother's cooking diary had been on the floor when she had entered her room—Peta had wondered who brought it down.

It had brought back many memories, but it was now sitting despondently on top of the wardrobe again, isolated once more. The scent of coffee paper had been the first thing to assault Peta's senses when she had picked it up.

Shaking her head, Peta willed herself to push away any other lingering remembrances, and reached for her nightstand, groping around in the dark for her CD player. When her left hand's fingers curled around it, she drew it to her bed, and placed the headphones over her ears. Pushing the 'play' button, Peta allowed the Irish music to drift into her mind, calming her.

It wasn't long before she shut her eyes and succumbed to sleep.

- -

Downstairs, Kiba was practically quivering in anticipation for the morrow. He was ecstatic that he wasn't alone in this strange place, even though he wouldn't show it. He was sitting on the couch again, looking out the window. This country was so foreign, and was so different from what he had encountered in Freeze City.

Den's words had left a lasting impression on him. It was obvious that wolves were more common in this strange state, and that alone was close to unfathomable for him. Laying there, he had many different thoughts, all ranging from his fellow pack members to the cheeky horse, ending in Peta.

Now, she was a queer thing.

Her mood swings were utterly mercurial, and her mouth was a sharp one; almost the complete opposite of her composed grandmother. Nana carried a sort of hidden authority, and her name didn't seem to do her justice.

Lastly, the house gave the impression of being empty—alone would be a better word for it. It was as if something were missing.

Not allowing his thoughts to dwell on the outlandish humans any longer, Kiba stubbornly shut his eyes and commanded his brain to shut down so he could get rest. He needed as much sleep as he could get to face the day tomorrow—being sleepy and disoriented while venturing out for once in a very long time was not wise.

Surprisingly, his rebellious mind obeyed, and his body relaxed as he drifted away into the realm of slumber.

- -

_The clang of metal was familiar to her ears, but it was still a disturbing sound. The surroundings were dank and humid—the street after a good rain. The smell of the water rolling of the concrete was one that refreshed anyone's senses, and she needed it—her mind was clouded with pain, most of it centered around her abdominal area._

"_Did you hear me?"_

_The voice was harsh and female, full of sneering and ill jest. _

"_I'm the leader now! You decided to desert, did you, coward?"_

_Another kick. She rolled over to her side, clutching at her shoulders in an attempt to fend off the oncoming blows. _

"_That's what you get for leaving!"_

_There was a finality in the statement, and she received a last booting—it knocked the breath out of her, and left her gasping like a fish out of water. A laugh echoed above her head, malicious and dripping with triumph. _

"_Gullible bitch." _

Peta bolted upright in her bed, the vein in her neck pulsing strongly, feeling like she had run a marathon; her hands were all a-tremble, shaking because of the dark visions in her nightmares. Her heart instantly calmed when she saw that she wasn't in a dark alleyway—on the contrary, she was sitting in her bed, sunlight pooling on her windowsill and invading her line of sight, making her blink stupidly.

Peta rubbed her forehead in agitation, and got out of bed. She was too busy muttering to herself to notice that Nana had opened her door and wandered inside, hence her reaction.

"Holy fu—I mean—Nana?"

"Who else would it be?" Nana asked, almost bored. She was used to her granddaughter's spontaneous combustions by now, and had merely wanted to check if Peta was up—after all, she _did_ have an appointment at the animal shelter. The perceptive elder noticed Peta's high strung attitude. Usually, at this time of morning, Peta was slower than a slug and lazier than Ahote after his naps.

"Did you have a nightmare?"

Peta's head shot up immediately. "No, 'course I didn't! What gave you that idea?"

Nana sighed tiredly. _She did_.

"Breakfast is ready."

"Could you get a more creative line?"

"Breakfast is ready."

"Okay, okay. I get the point." Peta glared at the door as Nana swung it shut, and then marched to her wardrobe, picking out her clothes for the day. The pit of her stomach felt bottomless, and not in the good sense—this time around, she'd have to lug Kiba along with her. Her mind scarcely welcomed the idea.

What day was it? Her eyes quickly scanned the room, and came to settle on her calendar. It was a Sunday.

_Just great._

- -

Kiba had been awake for a long time before Nana had come down the stairs. He had been listening and waiting for a sign of life that the day was starting. Now, the sounds (and smells) of sizzling bacon and eggs drifted out of the door leading to the kitchen; they were no doubt being fried for Peta.

A sigh and a thump alerted him to the fact that the young human was descending the stairs. Her steps were heavy and slothful, as if she were already worn-out. When she arrived at the bottom of the staircase, her eyes flicked towards him briefly.

"Morning."

She turned towards the kitchen and almost mechanically walked towards its doorway. Kiba followed, curious to see what would happen inside—luckily, the black dog was not within the vicinity of the kitchen, allowing him to enter without being concerned about being attacked. Nana, as always, was bent over the stove, her face completely obscured from his vision.

As if it were carved into her routine, Peta set herself down on a chair and waited for her breakfast. While she did that, she picked up what looked like a TV control and pressed a red button marked 'on'. Kiba wondered where they could possibly have a television in this crowded little kitchen, but it turned out to be a small screen on the counter of the kitchen.

The size of the screen did not, however, distort the image on the TV. His heartbeat quickened just by looking at it.

The image of a snowy landscape blared out at him; many still bodies were lined up on the snow, unmoving and quiet as death. There were splatters of crimson blemishing the ivory snow, a sight he was used to. It only took a few seconds to realize that he was looking at wolves—dead, _shot_ wolves, to be exact, and the icon disgusted him to the core. He wanted to turn away, but his eyes were inoperably glued to the screen.

A few words, printed in yellow, whizzed by at the bottom of the screen. Kiba could read well enough, and understood the blurred letters.

_'__Sara Palin places 150 dollar reward on wolf mitts and forelegs. Alaskan citizens encouraged to gun down canines.'_

Peta gave a horrified gasp, and the picture on the TV faltered and zipped out of view. With shaky hands, the human girl set down the remote on the table. Nana's face was gravely set. She was gripping the frying pan so hard that it seemed it was an extension to her arm. Peta bowed her head in what seemed like shame.

"I'm sorry you had to see that."

Kiba had to think over the words to comprehend their meaning. The brutal picture had branded itself into his mind, and no matter how hard he blinked, he couldn't get rid of the hovering apparition. He finally spoke a few words, their vowels stretched and strained as his nerves.

_What exactly __**was**__ that?_

Peta's face became pallid, and she swallowed as if she was digesting a rock. She fiddled with her fingers before answering.

"There are many heartless people in this world…some just have more power than others, unfortunately."

Silence hung heavy in the room, almost tangible with its level of intensity. Things carried on like this for a while; Kiba was still rooted to the ground in his spot, trying to relieve himself of what seemed to be a nightmare.

"Kiba." Nana's voice was stern, and it immediately brought him back to his senses. He looked up at her, currently at a loss for words. Her face softened slightly, like a mother looking upon a child. "Do not trouble yourself. It is a lost cause."

He did not quite understand the meaning of her last words, but let it go. He felt sick to his stomach. Kiba sat down on the cold marble floor, and watched the patterns of the material beneath him dance away with his vision, hoping to forget what had appeared on the screen a few minutes earlier.

- -

Peta was practically boiling with humiliation. She could not believe, out of _all_ the channels that she could possibly zap to, that she _had_ to pick the one with the political news on it.

_Could I possibly get any stupider?_

She felt like burying her face in her hands and just sitting there until the nauseating feeling crawling up her throat subsided. But no, she had to eat her breakfast like a good girl, run down to the animal shelter, get her cast off in town, feed the livestock on the farm when she came back and contend with talking wolves half the time.

Sighing like the weight of the world was on her shoulders (which it was not), she turned back to her eggs, feeling like she'd puke any minute. Instead, Peta picked up her fork and quietly chewed at her food until it was all gone from the plate.

She glowered out of the corner of her eye at the TV, as if it were an inanimate object's fault that her morning had been irreparably damaged. Peta got up from her chair, making a gruesome sound as it harshly screeched against the floor.

Kiba's ears went flat against his snow white head, and she flinched inwardly; she had forgotten about his sensitive hearing.

"If you're going to come along, you'd better follow…I'm just going to check on Ahote," she stated, and walked over to Nana, handing the plate to the old woman. The wolf looked a little more alert, and Peta decided that it was a good thing. His expression when the TV had turned on had been painful and distressing to observe.

Peta marched past both wolf and grandmother, continuing on to the shed outside. Peta had gotten angry at herself—lately, she had neglected her dog, and it frustrated her beyond belief. Ahote's enthusiastic barks greeted her, making her face break into a wide smile. She bent down immediately, arms open and welcoming. She was pelted by a heavy black body, and she laughed heartily when she felt Ahote's tongue licking her cheek.

When the zealous dog had climbed off of her, she ruffled the fur behind his ears and gave him a big kiss on the snout, which excited him to no end.

"How's my boy?" Peta asked, knowing she'd get no answer except happy barks and a madly wagging tail—which was more than enough. Ahote ran around in circles, chasing his tail; Peta could almost see the phantom of his youth in his place. He had not lost any of his fiery energy as his body had grown into that of an adult dog. Peta would never forget the day Ahote had arrived at her house.

He had been a lovely little puppy, full of the fuzz and warmth that all young animals possess; his fur had been soft and silky, a pleasure to run your fingers through even now.

Ahote always had a sort of positive energy around him, and that was exactly what she needed at that time. Peta was dragged back to the real world when Ahote knocked her over again. Her hand ached, but she didn't want to disappoint Ahote by showing that she was discomforted. Besides, the cast was coming off today—the hand inside was probably perfectly fine, albeit a little battered.

She lifted her left hand into the air, and, knowing it would be the approximate amount of revenge she needed, tickled Ahote mercilessly in the belly.

At first he yelped in surprise, but then barked in her face when he understood what she was doing.

Peta locked Ahote's head in the crook of her elbow, and gave him a half-noogie with the hand that had the cast on.

"Ha, ha! What now, oh mighty, all powerful tyrant?" she triumphantly inquired, knowing that her extremely ticklish and sensitive dog would collapse under her onslaught of tricky moves.

- -

Kiba did not know what he should have thought. It floored him as to why a dog—any canine relative—would take such pleasure in the company and attention of a human being. Peta's black dog was something akin to a willing slave.

_Ah, but you enjoyed Cheza's fondling, did you not?_

Irritable from the morning's TV incident, Kiba was nothing short of annoyed when the little voice in the back of his head made itself present again.

_That's different. I am a wolf and she is the Flower Maiden. It is a natural bond._

_You cannot say you didn't like someone petting your head. Admit it!_ The voice was a little condescending at this point, but Kiba chose to ignore it wholeheartedly.

_I will not._

_How did I get stuck with you? You're a boring host. _

_Make yourself scarce, then. _

_Oh, don't think you can get rid of me that easily. I'm not called 'the annoying voice at the back of your head' for nothing._

_I'm going insane. I'm having conversations with myself._ Kiba shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts.

_Maybe you are._

_What?_

_Going insane._

Kiba growled under his breath, thoroughly exasperated at the seemingly separate part of his mind arguing and twisting every one of his words. He shoved it in some inaccessible corner of his brain, and moved forward, determined to alert Peta to the fact that she still had to go to the animal shelter.

The girl was far too engrossed in keeping her balance whilst the dog jumped up and down to gain her interest. However, as soon as he came close, the dog drew back protectively, standing emphatically between Kiba and his mistress' legs and growling loudly.

Peta grabbed his collar, and urged him back with a soft command. "You probably want to go, right?"

Kiba only nodded. Peta sighed in return, and gently tugged Ahote off the scene until he was out of sight and inside the kitchen with Nana. Apparently, the dog was pleased, because Kiba heard scuffling and happy snufflings coming from underneath the door. Sniffing disdainfully at the scent emerging from the door (which was dog food, by the by), he turned back to Peta, waiting for a continuation of her sentence. What he got instead was a somewhat reproachful look.

"Why are you guys at each others' throats? Nana told me about your little spat with Ahote," she said, pinching the bridge of her nose jadedly. Shaking her head, she mumbled something incomprehensible and met his gaze. "Yeah, well, the car's this way."

Peta walked unhurriedly across the yard, as if she were in a daze, and swung open the gate for Kiba. Once he had trotted out, she snapped in promptly shut, locking it behind her. The girl's boots left deep tracks in the soft silt; Kiba followed her silently, treading softly wherever his paws landed.

They finally came to a ramshackle car that looked like it had definitely seen better days. Its dark green color was chipped in many places, and the one of the headlights was broken, making the car look like it had shattered its spectacles in an accident. Peta gave another grumble as the door refused to open beneath her coaxing attempts to unlock it with her key.

Finally, it swung open, and Peta punctually sat herself down in the driver's seat. She looked out expectantly at him, and sighed when she didn't get an answer.

"Well, go on; do your…thing, or whatever it is you do."

At first, he didn't know what she was speaking about, but then it occurred to him that she was talking about his illusion. Again, he gave a curt nod, and proceeded to lift the barriers of his illusion, making Peta blink before turning her eyes on the poor excuse for a road.

"Get in, get in. We haven't got all day. Besides, I need to get rid of this cumbersome piece of…sorry." Her voice was slightly sheepish when he gave her a look with a raised eyebrow (which he could now do—the expression wasn't exactly successful when he was a wolf).

Peta turned the key in the ignition, and the car gave a resigned splutter. She cursed. Kiba waited patiently as she dished out several threats to the engine.

"If you don't start up right now, I'm going to cut your transmission so fast you won't know what hit you. The mechanics will never find your remains."

Another turn of the key, another failure, and one more bout of swearing from Peta. She obviously wasn't in a good mood today.

"This is your _last _warning, you useless piece of junk."

This time, the engine gurgled itself into a semi-state of wakefulness, and they proceeded to pitter down the anomalous road, bumping when the odd rock interfered with the path of its wheels. The car gave a particularly worrying jerk, which had Kiba clutching at the side of the door for safety—it he hadn't held on, his head might have crashed into the dashboard.

Peta shook her head, as if she were deciding something. "That is _it_. I have _had_ it up to here with this car! When I get this stupid thing off," she growled, clenching her right hand and waving her cast around, "I'm going through my stuff in the garage. This car can go to hell, for all I care."

She kept mumbling this way until they drove into a town; the car passed under a big sign that said: '_Welcome to Glenwood Springs!_'

Peta turned the wheel to the right, and they wound through a small block of traffic until the car came to a stop in a spacious parking lot. Peta turned the engine off, and laid back, flexing her right hand. Soon enough, she snapped out of her trance and motioned for Kiba to get out of the car.

A gaunt looking, white building loomed before them, rising averagely in term of buildings' heights; its imposing double wooden doors looked large and hard to push open, but Peta swung them aside, revealing that their weight was not equivalent to their appearance. He caught a few of her grumbled words as she hustled inside.

"I don't even know why they call this place a shelter. It's more like a Goddamn clinic. But then again, they don't have an OR…oh, well…"

She led the way down a long hallway, and soon came to a stop in front of one of the doors that seemed absolutely identical to all the others. Peta looked inside, and her eyes widened drastically. She unlocked the door hastily and stepped in, only to exit a few moments later, looking shocked.

She gestured to Kiba silently, saying something like: "Stay here for a second."

Then she pattered down the hall, almost jogging in her haste. Kiba wondered what had gotten her into such a jitter. When she had disappeared around the bend of the hall, he decided to take a peek into the room which had given her an obvious fright.

He saw nothing. There was no one in the room, save a white cushion that looked dented from use. Shrugging, he leaned back on the wall, waiting for Peta to return.

Little did he know that what he had seen—namely, nothing—had been precisely what had frightened Peta.

- -

Peta hustled down the hall, almost tripping over air in her haste.

_There was no one in that room!_

She had absolutely no idea why Blue had been taken from her recovery room—anyone in their right mind would leave the wolves inside for more recuperation! And yet, her mind told her something was missing, that part of the jigsaw didn't exactly fit. Ah, it had been a full moon, hadn't it? Yes, of course! She must have been healed fully—maybe she and Hige had just been moved them to another section of the shelter.

Peta nearly walked _past_ the main lobby in her haste, and stopped only when her brain recognized the familiar surroundings. She looked down at Sally, the receptionist. Sally was an orderly lady, although her temper was sometimes frightening.

"Hey, Sal."

"Oh, Peta! Watcha doin' down here on a Sunday?"

"Helping, as always…say, can you tell me where Lisa is?"

"Sure, sure. She's in the lounge, having a coffee. Break, you know."

"Yeah. Thanks, Sal."

"No problem! See you around."

Peta rushed off from the lobby and down the hall, into the lounge (which was decorated very sparingly, and in her taste had always been quite morbid), where she found Dr. Lisa reclining on the couch with an issue of _Point de Vue_ in her hands.

"Lisa!"

The vet's head craned upwards, and the woman's face broke into a well-used smile, laughing wrinkles creasing the edges of her mouth.

"Hiyas!" she greeted, setting the French magazine down into her lap. "How're we doing?"

"Fine, fine," Peta said, stumbling over her words. "Listen, where'd the black dog go? And the brown one. You know, the ones that you brought in just a day ago."

"Oh, them!" Lisa looked even more pleased now, but for some reason, it struck a very ugly chord inside Peta's mind. "I found a home for them."

It took all of Peta's willpower not to sink into one of the chairs and start tearing out her hair. She swallowed, and took a deep breath, just to make sure she wouldn't begin screaming. "O-oh…well…who took them?"

"They were pretty knocked up, poor things," Lisa said sympathetically, craning her head to the side. "The sedatives had gotten to them so much, but it appears that they had an owner. He stopped by to pick them up."

_Owner? That's impossible…_ "Continue."

"Yeah, as I was saying—they were still asleep, so he just took them in his car and drove home. Very charming man—with an extremely odd name. Queer chap, too. Even had an eye patch...anyway, about his name...I've never heard the likes of it. Filled me in on the entire events. It seems like his dogs had been mauled up by wolves while they were out hunting. They got separated and only when we put up the adoption posters did he recognize them."

_Honestly, Lisa, out of all the times to be easy to fleece, you pick __**now**__? Couldn't you tell a wolf apart from a dog?_ Peta took another deep breath to cleanse her lungs and mind, ready to ask another question, but Lisa was still going strong.

"They were half-wolf hybrids. I was really curious about their extra digits on the back paws, you know, but his explanation fit everything," Lisa noted, tapping a pen against her chin. "Ah, well, I'm just glad they have a home."

"Lisa," Peta gasped, trying to get the doctor's attention. "Could you tell me this guy's name?"

"Okay…it was something like…oh, what was it? Darius? No, no…"

Peta felt like her heart would burst if she didn't know who it was—or if Lisa didn't remember. Luckily for her, the doctor had an epiphany.

"I remember now! Darcia. That was his name. Sounds Slavic, don't you think?"

"Whatever you say," Peta managed to say.

"You look pale, sweetie. Is something the matter?"

"Huh? No, nothing…nothing at all."

_It couldn't be coincidence, now could it?_ Peta struggled with her common sense and logic as Blue's words were replayed in her head. She'd never forget the look of sheer detestation in Blue's eyes as she had spoken.

"_Darcia. Darcia the mad Noble—the one who hunted us relentlessly and confronted us at Paradise's gates. Deranged. That's what he was. Utterly deranged. He hounded us till the edge of the world, and didn't stop until he polluted Paradise with his filth."_

As much as her brain was telling her that this couldn't be possible (she wished), Peta couldn't stop the feeling of her insides turning to ice as she realized that the only companions of her lonely guest were in the clutches of someone (by Blue's accounts) was downright mentally unstable.

As another thought entered her mind, her pulse hammered in her ears, seemingly louder than before.

_What am I going to tell Kiba?_

- -

_**A/n:**_ And yes, that is where I, the evil author, will leave you hanging. I wanted to get this chapter up so much earlier, but life just seemed to want to stop me. I'm not really pleased with it. -.- First and foremost, my Internet conked out, leaving me completely stranded, and then came school. But, _**THANK YOU**_ for all these wonderful reviews. Especially the anonymous ones! It's lovely to know that you like to leave reviews even if you're not registered. The support of you all is greatly appreciated. : )

**Shout-outs!**

**supergurlella-** Thank you for your lovely compliment. I assure you, it is my intention to keep writing. : )

**Xxwolfy-chanxX** – Your words are most kind. I'm glad you enjoy it, and I hope this chapter comes up to par for you. :D

**Missy- **I will continue, never fear. Thanks for your review. : )

**Joe-** Well, here's the more writing. Thank you very much for stopping by to leave a review.

**Bells of Requiem-** It does that to me, too. I hate it when it happens. I might have an entire page worth of a review written out, and then it's just deleted. XP I'm very glad Peta can make you laugh. Life certainly _does_ get in the way. -sigh- But there's not much that we can do. : ( Thanks for your review, though! : )

**Kandy Korn Wolf-** I love your username, just thought I'd let you know. XD I thank you sincerely for leaving a review. You have a dog? That's wonderful. I'd love to have one. And you're right, huskies have the most beautiful eyes. : )

**iwalkinthelight- **Well, Kiba's at the shelter now, and I doubt he enjoys it. :P Thankfully, tomorrow's Friday. And the day after is Saturday (as if you didn't know that XD)! Maybe I can get more writing done. My teachers seem to think it's nice to pile us up with homework since we're freshmen. I just hope the workload won't get greater as time goes on…-headdesk-

**Caged Bird in Demon Arms-** That sounds great! I'm usually babysitting in the summer, but I'd love to do work with animals during my vacation. Yes, Kiba does show his illusion, albeit a little reluctantly. XD Peta's nuts, anyways. Hige is a cool character—always makes me laugh. And he's fun to write. :D Pairing-wise…? Hmm, I don't know myself. There might be, seeing as I have such an immensely fun time writing Kiba/Peta scenes. XD Thanks for your review. : )


	6. Wrenches, Screws and Tires

_**Chapter 6**_

"Did he leave an address?" was the first question out of Peta's mouth. Lisa looked at her queerly, but then recovered.

"No…no, I don't think he did," she answered, and Peta felt her heart quailing.

Lisa seemed to think a little more before saying something again.

"Although…I know his car—he's been driving around town for quite a while. I saw the license plate—d'you know the big old mansion—the abandoned one?"

Peta nodded numbly, not knowing where Lisa was taking this.

"I _think_ that's where he lives, although I'm not sure…"

Peta's heart jumped. "Thank you, thank you! I'll pay you back, someday." She rushed out of the room, only vaguely hearing Lisa's: 'hey, I said I'm not sure!'

At this point, Peta wasn't thinking about Lisa. She was concerned more about a certain blue-eyed (or golden?) eyed wolf. What was she going to say?

_I'm going to be hated. That's what._

Peta stopped in her tracks, and stared at the hallway, which now seemed daunting and dark as it stretched before her. She couldn't make herself walk down the hall and turn the Goddamn corner and _face_ him. What in the world would she tell him?

"I'm sorry, Kiba, but your friends have just been kidnapped by a mentally unhinged person who is most likely going to scar them for life. Well, we'll do our best, right?"

Peta groaned and shoved her face into her left hand. She had never felt this sense of disappointment before. After a few moments of moping, she took a shaky breath and forced herself to her feet. There was no point in avoiding it now. There was no way that she could possibly wheedle her way out of this one, or lie—that was just downright dishonorable, and she would not subject to it.

She sharply turned around the corner and approached Blue's now-empty room. Kiba had been leaning on the wall, looking something between bored and disinterested; his cobalt eyes sparked when he saw her, and he perked up, obviously waiting for some alert as to where Blue and Hige were.

Peta started her grand speech off by wringing her undamaged hand nervously, and then hinging it in the loop of her jeans.

"Uh…I have some bad news…"

- -

Kiba listened intently, his shock growing more and more as Peta spun her tale. He had been so close—so close! What were the odds? Just _what_ were the odds of this _specific _person turning up and actually kidnapping Blue and Hige right from under the doctors' noses?

Kiba knew that Darcia was probably excellent actor—most insane people are. He sat down, jaw set determinedly when Peta went on to explain that Lisa was probably not at fault although she was angry at her too, somewhat. He barely listened to the last few lines she spoke.

_What am I going to do?_

Dispersed or not, he still had some responsibility surrounding the pack and its members; he remembered the time when they had come across the subject of the pack leader. They had ended up agreeing that there _was _no pack leader—and it had felt like a wise choice.

Cluing back into reality, he realized that Peta was snapping fingers in front of his face. His first instinct was to lunge out at her—after all, he had been violently yanked from a serious train of thought—but Kiba decided that it wasn't the best thing to do at the time; besides, Peta had already experienced exactly what his jaws could do. The proof was sitting on her right hand.

"Are you paying attention?" she said, waving her left hand around this time, looking a little irritated.

_What is her problem?_ Was the first thought that entered his mind.

"I'm going to take this thing off, and I'll be right back…after that…heh, well, I have an idea," Peta said, smirking somewhat at something she could only think of. Kiba felt suspicion prick at his mind; what was she planning? She caught his look and shrugged her shoulders. "It's just a hunch that I've got. Lisa said that this guy's car was probably the one that's always parked at the old Hardford manor. We'll check it out afterwards."

Kiba was still not put to rest by her statement.

_And just how will you accomplish that?_

- -

Peta was more than sure that Kiba could take care of himself, so she set of for the hospital (the one for humans), to have her cast removed. On the way, she mulled over many things—such as, how Nana was going to take her idea. She had to admit, that what she was thinking of probably wouldn't work—it was worth a shot, though, right?

_I wonder if the engine still works…_

She marched into the hospital, flinging open the door unintentionally, and scaring one of the nurses at the nearby counter.

- -

Kiba waited (not very patiently, but it still counted as waiting, right?) inside Peta's car. He leaned back into the rundown leather seat, arms crossed thoughtfully as he tried wrapping his mind around the conditions that were now set upon them.

He was so immersed in his thoughts that he jumped when Peta slammed the door shut, practically beaming as she flexed her now-free right hand. It looked emaciated and was its skin was flaking slightly, but other than that, the hand looked normal.

"Ha, this feels _so_ good," she gloated, turning the ignition on as if she hadn't a worry in the world. She held up her hand, and with her left hand's fingers, indicated two very obvious, jagged marks just below her knuckles. "The doctor said those are permanent," she sighed, and put her hand back on the wheel as they drove out of the parking lot. "Ah, well…"

The ride back to the house was silent. Peta looked like she was thinking about something important, because she didn't chatter or swear even when the car bumped along like a deranged tennis ball. Although it did induce several gestures of physical abuse from her, she didn't shout or yell like she usually did.

When they came to a stop just outside the house, before the fence, Kiba found himself wanting to ask her what exactly she was planning to do—because that was what she was doing. Could she be thinking of anything else? Possibly not. Before he could open his mouth to even voice his inquiry, Peta had vanished into the house, shouting (so Nana would hear) something about her 'tools', and asking if they were 'still available'.

Tiredly, Kiba swung open the door of the dilapidated automobile and stepped outside, feeling the soil sink beneath his shoes. As he approached the house at a slightly upbeat pace, his keen ears could pick out the sounds of metal on metal and a clanking of tin. Curiosity piqued, he poked his head around the corner of the house, only to find Peta rifling through what seemed to be a huge red box labeled _'Junk_'.

_Junk? _He thought, walking over to inspect what the heck she was looking at. Apparently, he moved too quietly for her to detect, and that resulted in Kiba almost being clobbered over the head with a gargantuan wrench. It stopped only an inch away from his forehead.

"Jesus," Peta gasped, eyes wide from fear. She lowered the offending metal apparatus. "Don't _do_ that."

"Do what?"

"Creep up on me like that. It's…weird," she finished awkwardly, turning back to her tools.

"Weird in what context?" he asked, trying to understand what she was doing. Kiba failed to see how this would help his friends—who were in dire need of his help. He constantly worried that he would be late. _Late_. The word had such an impact on him.

"It's just strange, okay?" Peta said, drawing out a screwdriver from the toolbox. "I'm going to do some work in the garage. If you want me, I'll be down there."

And at that, she spun around and marched away, tool belt clinking, looking like she was hurried; her steps were shuffled, and she was soon swallowed by the dark craw of the unwelcoming garage. Deciding not to follow her, Kiba migrated to the kitchen, where he sat, listening to the different and bizarre clattering coming from the garage.

- -

For most of the afternoon, the most perplexing noises emerged from the garage. Sometimes, he could hear metal squeaking and chaffing against another, hard surface. Other times, there was a flare of an engine being kicked into ignition—it sounded quite different from a car. The latter only lasted for a few seconds, and was usually followed by the standard package of Peta's curses or quite strangely, a praise or two.

Kiba had to admit, he wanted to know what was going on.

The sun was well in the sky when the din finally ceased and the garage fell silent. Nana had been bustling around the kitchen, doing this and that, but at the sudden stillness, she stopped in her tracks. She shook her head in what seemed disapproval, and went back to her housework.

Now too puzzled for his liking, Kiba arose from the chair he had been sitting in and opened the door to the back shed.

"What are you doing?"

His blunt voice apparently startled Peta, but this time she reacted less extremely; still, she turned, her eyes marginally widened. When she saw that it was Kiba (well, who else would it be?), she visibly relaxed. "Kiba, I'd like you to meet someone."

He walked towards her and then realized she was leaning on something. His eyes shifted downwards, and he was momentarily surprised by what he saw.

Peta was actually supporting herself on a motorcycle. Its design wasn't anything fancy, but it was aerodynamic in shape and black in color, accented by fierce streaks of metallic blue. Needless to say, Peta looked enormously pleased with herself.

"Well, what do you think? I did a complete revamp, although I won't know if he's alright unless I tested him out…" Peta said uncertainly, turning and inspecting the vehicle herself. She ran her hand over the seat and adjusted the mirrors slightly. It was noticeable that she was very familiar with the motor vehicle. "Who would've thought…ah, well, it's for Blue and Hige, so I don't mind at all!"

Peta turned to him, smiling like she didn't have a single qualm. "I'm going to get all this grease off of me," she said, showing him her palms (which were utterly and completely begrimed), "and then I'll fish out my spare helmets."

As she walked past quickly, Kiba felt his stomach lurch.

He looked back at the motorcycle, which was smugly staring back at him, glittering stripes gloating.

_I'm going to ride __**that**__?_

- -

Peta stepped out of the shower, feeling wholly relieved. Her hair had begun to stick to her head after hours of crouching beneath the motorcycle, making her sweat. She had strained almost all her upper arm muscles in an attempt to fix the bike, which had been out of commission for a good four years. Only seeing the sapphire stripes going down its length shot a barrage of memories back out at her, and it wasn't truthful to say that she enjoyed it.

Peta dried her hair ferociously, mercilessly scrubbing at her scalp to get the moisture away from her hair. Minutes later, despite the fact that it was still a little soggy, she tied it up into a tight bun at the bottom of her neck, where it was immovable.

_Boy, I haven't done __**this **__in a long time…_she mused, patting down stray ringlets of rebellious hair that stuck out of her bun. She slipped into a pair of jeans and a turtleneck (sometimes, Nana wondered if Peta wore anything else), and her trusty army boots—they had never failed her on a bike ride.

There was no fear on her part concerning the ride itself—it was the engine she was worried about. How did she know that it wouldn't sputter and give out in some random moment and send her (and Kiba!) sailing through the air? Peta sighed, tightening the belt around her jeans. She'd just have to find out the hard way.

There was absolutely no time to waste on the matter of Hige and Blue—they were in a dangerous situation, and if getting to where they were meant a few burns and her precious bike exploding, then so be it. Peta had no idea _why_ she had gotten so attached to these odd people…uh, wolves. She felt like she had to help them.

_Psh, now I'm going on about it as if it's my duty!_ She snorted at that thought. Peta reached into one of the drawers of her nightstand, and drew out two leather gloves; she knew from experience that her extremely hard grip on the handle of the motorcycle would make her develop painful sores, so she decided to avoid that for the time being. Peta had enough on her hands and her mind as it was.

In a matter of days, her entire outlook on Nature as she knew it had been turned upside down, shaken side to side, and become a topsy-turvy concept which she could no longer think very long about without getting a slight headache. She was acting stupidly, and she knew that—but every time Peta went to feed the animals, she would try imagining what it would be like if they had voices.

It was a slightly absurd suggestion—but hey, she (actually, Nana had) picked up a wolf-guy that seemed to come from an alternate universe, so why would it be insane to think that her dog actually had a voice?

_I'm going to drive myself crazy,_ Peta thought, shaking her head and grabbing her helmets from the innards of the wardrobe. She held one with each hand, and clomped her way down to the kitchen. Nana had simply looked up from her counter, and gone back to her work.

"Good luck."

Peta stared in wonder at the elderly lady. _What, can she read minds, too?_ Although she didn't entirely doubt the notion, it was still a little unnerving to have someone reply like that to you. She went up to her grandmother, and gave the woman a hug and a kiss on the cheek.

"If I'm late, call the police," Peta joked, laughing. Nana patted her on the back and resumed what seemed to be her endless pile of work in the kitchen.

Peta left the room, not looking back, and shutting the door gently behind her.

- -

Kiba waited outside, thoughts bouncing around his brain like a ping-pong ball gone bad. He focused on the figure before him (in reality, below him) and sourly realized that Peta's dog was standing only a few yards away from him. Kiba nearly jumped in surprise when the dog spoke to him—even more surprisingly, Ahote (had that been his name?) didn't show any signs of aggression. To be frank, he looked quite resigned.

_I see…she took out the thunder-wheel for you, did she?_

Kiba blinked at him, not understanding his words, and then realizing that Ahote was talking about the motorcycle. Not wanting to vocalize his response just yet, he nodded gingerly.

_You should be grateful, wolf._ Ahote added the last word as if it were an insult, and he made a good job of making it feel that way, too. _It is not pleasant for her to dig up such things._

This time, Kiba replied. _What do you mean?_

Ahote shrugged in a canine way, rolling his shoulders a little. _I was only a pup when she put it away in that dark place, but I could tell she was not pleased about it._

And then, there was silence, but it didn't last for long. Peta's steps, which _always_ seemed to be horrendously loud, approached the porch door. The girl emerged from inside, holding two ovular, shiny objects. She paused in surprise when she spotted Ahote.

"Now _that's_ an improvement," Peta whistled, looking from her dog to Kiba and back again. "Together and not fighting? Whoo!"

She tramped down the few, worn steps of the porch, and handed Kiba a jacket and a helmet. He stared at the jacket, studying the uncanny scent coming from it. It smelled sort of…musty; like it hadn't been used in a long time.

"Don't worry, it'll fit," Peta assured him, jamming the helmet onto her head. Her face was suddenly obscured by a bent sheet of tinted glass. "It was dad's…"

Ahote tensed minimally, and moved closer to Peta. She ruffled his head with a gloved hand, and lifted the visor so Ahote could see her smile. She turned to Kiba, looking a touch irked. "And no, you may not ask questions about it, but it's _not_ like I have some sort of melodramatic past. Gosh, I wish."

Peta marched up to the motorcycle, and easily put herself in the seat; he was slightly surprised at the automatic movement of hers. The motorcycle stood a good many inches taller than her waist, but she just got on it like there was no problem. She craned her head towards him, visor still fixed upwards.

"Well, are you gonna get on, or are you going stand there and gawk?"

Kiba's already glum mood curdled at the flat tone of her voice, so he put on the jacket without another thought and walked over to where the bike was. Peta turned around in her seat, so she was sitting backwards on the saddle of the motorcycle, and nabbed the helmet nimbly from his hands.

"Heads up," she warned, and then brought the helmet down on Kiba's head. It was a speedy action, but that didn't mean that it wouldn't _hurt_.

_I shouldn't let her get away with this_, Kiba growled internally, trying to curb the urge to push Peta's helmet down on _her_ head. Another part of his mind reminded him that this was probably the only chance Blue and Hige had at survival, so he stayed silent—he stewed, but stayed silent. Kiba was immediately sure that he hated having a helmet on.

It was one of the most claustrophobic feeling that he had ever experienced. Only humans could invent something as suffocating as this. He was still standing when Ahote's voice penetrated his mind for a second time.

_You take care of her, you hear? I won't have my mistress getting hurt for your sake,_ the dog said, sitting down and keeping an eye on Kiba, making sure he got the message. _Seeing as I can't come with you, I can't ensure her safety, but if you let her be harmed…_

_How do you even know we're going somewhere dangerous?_ Kiba inquired tartly, somewhat annoyed at this display of blind loyalty.

_I can tell_, Ahote merely said, and then took a look at Peta. _She is feeling uneasy. _

That seemed to be an indirect way of saying: 'get going, idiot.' Kiba clenched his teeth together, and forced himself to sit behind Peta on the motorcycle; still no movement.

Peta sighed, looking at him over her shoulder, this time her visor down. He couldn't see her eyes through the glass, and it was to some extent, uncomforting. Her muffled tone of voice suggested that she was a little impatient.

"Well? Are you going to grab on, or do you fancy the idea of flying off of the bike?"

He inched a little closer. Peta practically shook the bike in frustration.

"Look, if you won't do this, then I can go alone—it's as simple as that."

That did the trick. Kiba, determined to go and find a way to liberate his pack members, he jerked forward and laced his hands around Peta's waist.

"About time," she groused, and pressed the ignition. The engine below them erupted into life, giving a hoarse snarl as it started to work again. The metal beneath their feet vibrated reassuringly, and Peta swerved the bike onto the dirt road, her gloves squeaking against the handlebars. She gave one of the handlebars a fierce twist, and the resulting burst of speed was enough to make Kiba tighten his grip. She hadn't been mocking when she had talked about flying off.

Peta laughed lightly, seemingly happy about her bike and its performance. "Still haven't lost my touch!"

Whatever she meant by that escaped him; instead, Kiba concentrated on not being pried away from the saddle of the bike by the speeding wind. He heard Peta shouting something over the rush of air.

"Hardford mansion, here we come!"

- -

_**A/n:**_ I am so, so sorry for the late update! I have been virtually swamped with a busy schedule. I didn't have tons of homework, but my day is really long and I spend what time I can eating and sleeping. XD But, I have not forgotten about you guys. Every day, I keep thinking that I should write more of my fanfiction, and plotlines jump out at me everywhere. I've got break, so I'll probably be doing more writing now. _** ATTENTION FOR THOSE WITH QUESTIONS:**_ All the main characters will appear in the fanfiction—they'll take their time, though; I'm a slow developer. Also, from now on, I'll try replying to everyone individually so I won't have to leave these humongous author's notes and shout-outs. Thank you for all the wonderful reviews! : )

**Shout-outs!**

**slsgirl-** Haha, here's your update. Thank you for stopping by. : )

**ENA-THE-WOLF- **Sorry…kinda left you hanging again. ; Yes, the original characters will be in this fanfiction. If they weren't, it wouldn't be called fanfiction, now would it? :D No offense taken. But I'm warning you—I adore cliffhangers, and I'm good at them, too. : )

**mayanpaw- **Wow, I seem to catch the people who live in Colorado, eh? XD It's a beautiful state. I hope I can visit one day. Hope you liked this update. Thanks for your review! : )

**Xxwolfy-chanxX- **Thank you for the compliment. I will keep it up! : )

**Bells of Requiem-** Whoo, another long review! I enjoy these commentaries of yours. :D Yeah, he was pretty 'one flew over the cuckoo's nest' type of guy. o.O You will see what Peta's dream was about…-evil laughter- It won't be uncovered really soon, though. I'm sorry for your loss. : ( I lost a pet a year ago, and it was one of the most painful experiences in my life. And for the record, she makes my blood boil, too. Thanks for your review! : )

**ShadowYashi- **Haha, he didn't have a fit, but he wasn't exactly ecstatic, either. I hope I made it realistic. As I said above in the author's note –nudge, nudge- everything will be brought in sooner or later. It just may take some time. You think it'd be nice? Well, that's really good to know. :D Yes, I think the scenes between them are among the funniest to write, along with Blue/Hige. Thank you for your review! : )

**iwalkinthelight-** Plot twists are my specialty, dear reviewer. :D With a bit of luck, I made his reaction okay. I had to go over it a few times. High school—no college; not just yet, anyway. XD Here is chapter six! I hope it's to your liking.

**Caged Bird in Demon Arms-** She is gonna be fine—Peta's a tough cookie. I'll give you a hint: it didn't have to do with him. It's more like Peta's personal experience. He's here, alright. I will try to update!


	7. Let There Be Dark!

_**Chapter 7 **_

The wind whooshed past Kiba's helmet, deafening him and hurting his sensitive hearing. He was trying his best to cling on without feeling uncomfortable, but it wasn't exactly working for him. Peta, on the other hand, was completely absorbed in her driving. From time to time, she looked from side to side, plotting where the bike would go next.

This extreme speed was something Kiba had never felt before, and he did not rejoice in it. The bounce of the motorcycle was foreign, as was the ceaseless growl exuding from its engine. Surprisingly, though, the bike did not release ominous clouds of choking exhaust, as he thought it would. Instead, it ran along swiftly and _almost_ smoothly.

Shattering this glass of thought was a cry from Peta as the motorbike veered sharply to the right, blurring Kiba's vision and causing him to tighten his grip. The tires of the bike squealed painfully against the asphalt below them. He barely had the time to spot a distorted brown figure melt into the background behind them as they sped away, thankfully on track again.

"Oh, God."

Peta's voice was hoarse with too much excitement, and her grasp on the handlebars had doubled. She lifted the volume of her speaking, so he could catch her explanation.

"That was probably a deer—we get a lot of that up here, and you've got to be really careful on the roads," she said, and then added, muttering: "Good thing I didn't hit it…"

They continued shifting through the roads until they came to the downtown part of Glenwood Springs, where Peta chose roads that led them away from the town, back up into the mountains; they had taken a wide arc from where she lived, and Kiba didn't have quite a good feeling about the destination they were trying to reach.

Mercifully, the bike came to a grinding halt on a wide, seemingly abandoned road. It wasn't asphalt that paved this path, just plain dirt and pebbles. The bike swung to the left, making Kiba think that they had lost balance. His breath returned when he saw that it was only Peta using the stand of the bike.

Peta hopped off the bike, and removed her helmet. Her hair was mussed up, and her cheeks looked red from being squished by the sides of the helmet for too long. She let out a long sigh, putting the helmet under one arm, like someone who was holding a ball.

"Now _that_…I haven't done that in a long time," she huffed, and flipped open the trunk at the back of the bike and shoved her helmet in. She turned, observing Kiba for a while. "Would you like me to take it off for you?"

"No."

"Go ahead, then. I need to shut the trunk."

At first, Kiba fumbled with his fingers for a while, trying to find the clasp whilst Peta apparently looked out towards the oh-so-interesting landscape. Quite gratefully, he snapped open the clasp and wrenched the helmet off of his head.

Kiba thought air had never felt cooler and better in his life.

He slid off of the bike, temporarily shocked at his wobbly legs. Peta just laughed, igniting the fire of miniscule anger in the back of his mind.

Peta placed his helmet inside the trunk, and fastened the lock on it, still chuckling. "It's okay, you'll get used to it. You possibly hung on too tight." She turned to him again, suddenly serious, and pointed a gloved hand in the direction of a barely visible black protrusion over the hill. "That's the tip of _one_ of the turrets of Hardford mansion."

Kiba narrowed his eyes, striving to focus better on the black blob in the distance. "Is this…mansion…large?"

Peta nodded gravely. "Goddamn place is huge. Would you like some history on it? We're walking to it, since we can't take the bike."

He was strangely thankful that they wouldn't have to use the motorcycle again, but all the same, he answered her. "I'd like to know."

"Okay," Peta said, squinting; she was aiming to remember what details she could salvage about the imposing building. "Well…the Hardfords were a couple—a very rich couple. Didn't have any kids, I think…anyways, they used a lot of money in building the mansion, and that got the entire town talking. Everyone always told me they were a weird family. Mr. Hardford was always locked up in his mansion and Mrs. Hardford was outgoing and all girly-girl like."

She paused, reminiscing. They had already started walking, Peta leading the way. She toyed with her gloves thoughtfully for a moment before resuming her narrative.

"Well, yeah, like I said, they were really strange. Really soon, odd things started happening around the neighborhood. Strays were beginning to disappear from all over, and even Mr. Silverman's prize stallion was nabbed," Peta reflected, now tying her hair up into a high ponytail.

"So this one guy was taking his collie for a walk past the mansion," she said, burying her hands deep within her jean's pockets. "And he heard scary noises, like whining and yowling." Peta took another break, and shuddered before carrying on. "He took a look into the mansion's basement windows and saw these horrible things."

Peta kicked a random pebble forcefully—a habit, Kiba had noticed—which she did only when she was nervous or angry. He watched her carefully as she sped up her pace and took a few deep breaths.

"Mr. Hardford had set up an illegal laboratory on his own, and was performing experiments on animals," she said, disgust crossing her face in a contorting grimace. "They called in the police and the bastard was thrown in jail—Mrs. Hardford was nowhere to be found the next morning, so they persecuted him individually."

Peta let her shoulders slump before shrugging in a blasé manner. "Since then, no one's ever gone inside. Guess they think it's haunted or something. They didn't even knock the blasted thing down." Peta gave another sigh. "Ah, well, it all happened years before I was born, so I don't know what's true or not, but that's basically it."

They walked in silence; Kiba was registering everything she had told him. It wasn't a very elaborate tale, but the atrocities committed in the basement of that mansion were something he did not look forward to hearing about again.

- -

Nana watched the darkening sky with apprehension. She wasn't sure she felt confident about Peta leaving; it looked like there was a storm coming about, and it didn't look like a small one, either. The clouds had gathered around in grayish clusters, looking like a bunch of haggard gossipmongerers sitting disconsolately in the corner of crowded shop.

The short lady sat down in her favorite rocking chair, picking up her needle and silently resuming her progress; the crochet appeared swiftly and neatly, turning into what would soon be a very lovely sweater.

Peta had worn out most of her turtlenecks; she wore the same, drab things over and over again. Nana sighed. She knew her granddaughter wasn't one to wear fashionable garments. If she could go about for a week with unchanged clothes, she would. Nana continued her crochet, thoughts about finishing it within two days swirling in her mind.

Ahote's maddened scratching made her look up from her knitting; the black dog was pawing violently at the door, trying unsuccessfully to get the doorknob to open. Nana got up from her chair, and unlocked the door.

"Please be quick about it," she said, and Ahote bolted out the door.

Instead of running to the back of the house, where Ahote usually carried out his business, he darted off into the murky afternoon, under the fence (tricky bastard), and out into the road, leaving a smoking trail behind him.

"Ahote!" she called after him, and grabbed her jacket for defense against the frigid air. Nana shuffled out of the house, closing the door behind her. She followed Ahote's footprints, trying to comprehend why the dog had taken off in the first place.

A bark marked Ahote's location.

Nana hustled over hurriedly, keeping an eye out for a familiar black shape. Suddenly, the dog ran up to her feet, panting intensely and looking distressed. He let out a whine and tugged at the edge of Nana's dress, pulling back frantically and creating grooves in the ground by scuffling around forcefully. She went in the direction he was hauling her in, albeit reluctantly.

A small, slumped figure was draped over itself, sitting in the middle of the road. A small puddle of red liquid peeked out from under handfuls of ravaged toffee colored fur. Every time the pitiable animal moved about feebly, the cheerless tinkling of bangles clashing against each other floated in the thin air. A somber whimper emerged now and then from the bundle.

Nana knelt down, stretching out a weary hand.

The way things were going, her once-peaceful home was going to be turned into an animal hospital. Thunder rolled overhead, and Nana sped up her job.

She gingerly touched the soaking fur, turning the animal over so she could inspect its injuries. There was nothing really wrong with it, but there was one deep laceration across the back left leg; this had probably rendered the poor thing unable to walk. From what she could see, there were no other wounds worth noting.

Nana stroked the shapely head of the wolf, whispering solacing words. The pup's mind was a gargle of confusion and pain—memories and images blurred together like a badly taken picture; slurs of color flashed to and fro, causing the wolf to crack open its eyes resignedly.

_Go back…gotta…not safe…_

Nana shushed the creature, gathering him into her arms. His voice sounded young and wary, not sure of where he was or what was happening.

Ahote bounced around Nana's feet, forging the way back for a few feet, then reversing his pace to check if they were alright.

As they approached the house, Ahote pushed the fence open with his nose, causing Nana to raise an eyebrow at him.

"Where did you learn that?" Nana shook her head, half in disapproval, half in gratitude—it was probably Peta's doing. Nana walked into the house, completely welcoming the warm atmosphere that her home offered. Trying to keep her balance, Nana picked up a towel from the kitchen and spread it haphazardly on the couch, providing a space for the pup to rest, somewhat.

She ran the details of the animals over in her heads—were they all inside? Den was in the stables, and so was Nahimana. The sheep had been kept under the awning all day, and the pigs were currently sleeping. The chickens were wreaking havoc on their chicken house, and Ahote was here with Nana. All were accounted for, except Peta and Kiba, of course.

Nana straightened out the towel beneath the pup, and turned to see Ahote sitting expectantly next to her, a roll of gauze in his mouth. She blinked in surprise, and then held out her palm; Ahote put the gauze in her hand, and she scratched him behind his ears as a sign of goodwill.

Nana reached into the nightstand, pulling out the disinfectant spray. She always had a bottle of it around (accompanied by some small puffs of cotton), seeing as Peta managed to hurt herself in every way possible on the farm.

One day the girl was impaling her foot on the sheep pen, the other it was succeeding in making the ram…well, ram her. Mechanically, Nana sprayed a bit of cotton with the disinfectant, and lowered it mercilessly on the cut.

The pup was obviously not fully unconscious, and upon feeling the stinging onslaught of the disinfectant, wriggled about until he was practically hanging halfway off the couch. Nana pushed him back, laying his head on a small pillow.

A flash of lightning startled Ahote from his sitting spot; it sawed through the sky, and crammed bursting light into every corner of the house for a brief second. Just a few moments later, a peal of thunder shook the rafters of the house, making Ahote lie down abruptly, paws over his eyes.

Nana looked out the window worriedly.

Rain streaked down the glass like celestial tears, pooling outside and dripping off the windowsill in fast-moving torrents that seemed to ephemerally sparkle before they smattered into the ground.

She continued to cleanse the pup's wound—thankfully, the wolf had fallen asleep, and she could make quick work of the gauze without any further protest. Nana wrapped the afflicted limb swiftly, her thoughts focused on one thing.

_Peta…_

- -

They had only just managed to get under the canopy surrounding the mansion when the rain started to come down. It trickled down the sides of the mansion in syrupy streaks; the rain falling in the distance seemed black to Peta. She shook water droplets off of her jacket and swiveled about to face Kiba.

"Did you get wet?"

"Does it matter?"

"If you get sick, it does matter," Peta grumbled, wringing moisture out of her ponytail.

"I won't get sick," was the curt reply.

"That's nice to know, but the flu doesn't pick and choose," she shot back, and then looked around. "It's been quite a while since I set foot in Hardford Mansion."

"You've been in here before?"

"Many times," Peta said, leaning on the wall languidly as she continued to observe her surroundings. "Like I told you: people thought this place was haunted. It was really popular among the teens to come in here in order to fulfill a dare."

"Why be scared when there's nothing in here?" Kiba asked, his cerulean orbs looming out of the gloom. Peta absentmindedly wondered if they glowed in the dark, and shrugged.

"Humans are generally scared of things that aren't there," she answered, shoving herself off the wall. "I'm no exception." Peta peered into the innards of the house, looking a little uncertain. "Well…where do you want to start?"

"What do you mean…?" Kiba asked, his voice trailing off slightly.

"I mean what I mean," Peta said cryptically, staring at him inquiringly. "You want to start looking in the cellars, in the attic, in the kitchen? Where?"

"Is there someone in here?"

"I was hoping _you_ could tell me that."

"…Me?"

"Yes, you. Do I look like I have a nose that can smell anything within three miles?" Peta told me. "I'm the human one here."

_You could put it that way,_ Kiba thought dryly, directing his gaze away from her for a while, trying to make out what the room he was peering into appeared like. The foggy window obscured his view partially, but he could make out old furniture; cobwebs and grime were liberally spread throughout the giant living room. In the far side of the room, the rectangular, cavernous opening of a fireplace gaped out at him, its hearth dark and deserted.

A high pitched creak surprised Kiba out of his thoughts and made him look at Peta; she was holding the door to the house open, one hand in a gesture that suggested he go inside. He complied, even if a small portion of him was unwilling.

The first step into the house was like a step into the unknown.

A musty, moldy scent wound itself around him, clogging up his sense of smell. Every footstep disturbed a maelstrom of dust that threatened to make him sneeze. Peta was surveying the room, her eyes glazed over with something that seemed to be sour nostalgia. In a hurry, she cleared her throat and shook her head, zooming back into the present.

"So…there are two ways to go," she explained, pointing with a thumb over her shoulder. "There's two sets of staircases. One leads up to the bedrooms and the other leads down into the cellars. Which one do you think is our best bet?"

Kiba slowly examined the room again, and spoke. "The dirt makes it hard to say if there is anyone else with us." He took a small pause, and then asked her something. "Can you fight?"

Peta's eyes widened at him, looking like dinner plates. Eventually, her astonishment ebbed away, and she nodded. "Well enough, I guess."

It was half an answer, but enough for the moment. Kiba knew that she'd probably survive only ten seconds _maximum_ against that demented man. He tried to push the gory details of their last run in far away from his current thoughts.

"I think the cellar would be a good place to start," Peta noted. "There's a small tunnel that surfaces from underground in the west side of the house—if we pick the cellar, we can leave if there's an emergency."

"And the attic?"

"Well, I suppose we _could_ jump…" There was a small break in the conversation. "Okay, the cellar it is!" Peta turned on her heel and walked surprisingly quietly across the wooden floor and hobbled around in the darkness for a while. Finally, Kiba heard a piece of metal clank, and Peta's voice swam out of the obscurity again. "Found it."

Kiba followed her footsteps—which showed up clearly in the filth—all the way to a secluded corner of the living room, next to the fireplace. She was holding open yet another door, this one looking like it had been torn to pieces. There were deep grooves running along its width and length, an occasionally profound lesion standing out from the rest. Peta swung the door into the sparse light, and breathed out slowly.

"What happened here…?"

A particularly loud crash of thunder made them both jerk uneasily; the door's mangled countenance only added to each one's anxieties.

Peta inhaled sharply, flexing her fingers. "Are we going down or not?"

Kiba took the initiative and put his foot down on the first stair, descending into the shadow of the lower bowels of the house. He presently heard Peta's footsteps following his, so he continued on his way, his palm brushing against the wall off the house so he wouldn't lose his footing despite his extremely developed vision.

The stairs continued for quite a while—he was sure they had been walking for just over a minute. Kiba was wondering how much longer the stairs would carry on until he heard something that made him freeze in his tracks. Peta crashed into him, not being able to see whether he had stopped or not, and only just managed to not tip him over by backtracking frantically.

"Crap," she hissed, rubbing her nose irately. "What was that for?"

"Quiet," he said, pouring out an entire warning in a single word. It was enough to make her clam up sufficiently. Kiba was poised, tense, waiting for more evidence to confirm his suspicion. Dimly, a few feet above their heads, he picked up on the sound of the floorboards groaning under some sort of weight. "Someone's coming."

Peta's exterior seemed to harden. "Keep going. The tool cupboard downstairs is only a few steps away."

Following her advice, Kiba strode over the last couple of stairs until Peta stepped in front of him and navigated through the dark expanse of a cellar, evidently searching for something. There was a soft squeak as the huge cupboard's entrance was revealed. Peta faced him, jaw set stubbornly.

"Get in."

As Kiba entered, he caught a glimpse of glass glinting on a far shelf of the room. It looked like a…tank?

Peta soon followed. _I seem to be opening things today,_ she thought grimly, shutting the entrance behind them and squatting down, patting her palms over the no-doubt grubby floor. The cupboard was as big as a small room—two adults could easily fit inside, so there was no unnervingly close proximity between them.

"What are you doing?"

Peta maintained her hunt until she clasped something long and heavy in her hands. "'Tool cupboard', remember?" She stood, shouldering a weighty pipe. "Gotta defend myself, don't I?"

There was silence; the only sounds that were audible were their light breathing and the sporadic flurry of footsteps that could now even be heard by Peta. The light paces were coming closer, and soon entered the room. They circled around the table that Peta knew was in the middle of the room, and finally came to a stop in front of the tool cupboard.

The person outside the tool cupboard shifted their weight on one foot, making a painfully loud screech radiate from the complaining flooring.

It made Peta's heartbeat increase to think that there was only a thin layer of wood separating her and Kiba from whatever danger lurked outside. She tightened her grip on the pipe, seeking solace from it.

And, like the gates of Hell swinging unfastened on Judgment Day, the cupboard's door was pulled outwards.

- -

_**A/n**_: Dear heavens above! I wanted to get this chapter out so much earlier, but this bozo at school crippled a finger on my left hand in PE, and I couldn't type for days! Thankfully, the splint is out now, and I am back to full typing normally. Yet again, I leave you (my lovely reviewers and readers!) with a horrible cliffhanger. –evil laughter- Don't worry, things will work out. Anyone want to guess who that 'brown figure' was at the beginning of the story? ; ) Oh, and please take the poll on my profile. XD

**Shout-outs!**

**rayne156 – **I'm glad you like it. Thank you for stopping by and leaving a review. I have very much fun writing this. :D

**Caged Bird in Demon Arms – **Hehe, they tried. Gotta give them credit for that. Your guess is really, really close, but not just quite correct. That shall be cleared up in due time, too. : )

**Bells of Requiem – **They rode into danger alright…but it's not quite what you think. I love to keep you guessing! :D Evil, I know. The motorcycle _is_ quite the Kiba-annoying-machine, isn't it? Haha, but it _does_ have significance in the story. That will come soon, too! : )

**Motocross Zombie –** Thank you for the awesomely lovely compliment. I am warning you—interestingness will go up from there. :D I just hope you'll enjoy it! : )

**WhiteWolfShaera –** What's a story without an antagonist? :] I know what you mean about the grammar mistakes. It annoys me straight out of my seat. Like I said above, the plot twists are far from done, good reviewer. I hope this update satisfied you! : )

**TheBeastlyKunoichi – **Thank you and thank you again for all the gracious compliments! :D I know what you mean… the majority of the Wolf's Rain romance fanfictions are centered around Toboe and Tsume…it's not that I have something against it, but I just don't read it, so I'm forced to scour the archives for something worth reading. And, as you know, that's pretty hard. –sigh- You think that'd be cute? Well, that's nice to know. I'll see what I can do. :}

**thejoshgray – **Haha, that's nice to know. These characters have a life of their own now, so I'm not stopping any time soon, just so you know. :D Here is your next chapter! : )


	8. Old Acquaintances

_**Chapter 8**_

Nana sat across the couch, slightly reeling from the sequence of events that had just been described to her. Just what had Peta gotten herself into? Paradise? Lunar flowers? Alchemy? The list only grew as time went on.

Outside, the rain crashed down fiercely with a vengeance and smacked at the windows angrily, now falling in bigger, more vicious torrents. The storm was only getting worse. Nana's heart was greatly worried for her granddaughter, but the thoughts had been whisked away when the pup on the couch had begun to stir.

At first, the young wolf was completely silent—he was just sitting there on the couch, eyes open and glassy; that is, until he began to talk to her. She had not invited his tale, but she had asked about how he had come to be in front of her house.

Apparently, the pup had another pack mate, and they had awoken in an iron cage in the basement of a huge house—a house, Nana guessed, that was Hardford mansion. She wasn't surprised that there were still things like cages and glass jars down there. None of the people in the town had bothered to go inside, and others were too scared, cowed by superstition.

His pack mate (a very courageous, but gruff person, he said) had, according to him, broken out of the cage somehow. Whether the seemingly heroic pack mate had chewed through the iron bars or simply opened the cage in a way unknown to Nana, she didn't know. The pup had been shoved out of the house—the person they called 'Darcia' had actually left the house for a short interval of time, giving him a window of time to distance himself from the house.

This companion of his did not follow, but instead stayed behind, for some unknown reason.

Nana patted the rocking chair's arm unintentionally, having the urge to get on the ground and pray that her granddaughter did not have a meeting with this notorious man.

_Did I say too much?_

Nana looked up. The pup had tilted his head at her in an apologetic manner.

_I didn't mean to._

"You said enough and nothing less," Nana replied, patting his head as an indication of benevolence. This wolf seemed much more lighthearted than Kiba, who always was engrossed in his own thoughts.

Nana knew that Kiba probably didn't mean any harm—she was sure that he had a very kind heart, buried down there somewhere. Well, with all the small company had gone through, who was to blame him for his defensive nature?

"What is your name?" Nana asked, realizing that she had nothing to call this pup by, except 'pup', and that did not seem quite endearing.

_Toboe_.

"You can call me Nana," she said, giving a small smile. "Would you like something to eat, Toboe?"

He nodded enthusiastically, injury completely forgotten. _That'd be wonderful!_

- -

As soon as the crack of muted light had hit Kiba's eyes, he had lunged out of tool cupboard, white fur flashing in the gloomy cellar. Whoever was outside stepped sideways to avoid him, and effectively dodged Kiba's dangerous jaws, but not before Kiba scarred a bit of the person's clothing.

The wolf didn't know where Peta had gone. He assumed she had stayed inside the cupboard, but he was wrong in his guess.

The dark figure standing before him was suddenly swept off its feet, landing to the ground with a painful grunt. Kiba blinked, looking around before spotting Peta to his right, pipe still clenched in her hand. She looked nauseated.

Peta opened her mouth to say something, but was cut off when she was slammed into the wall, a hand at her neck. She let out a yelp when her head collided with the wood, and her feet instinctively kicked out, trying to hit whatever was holding her up.

As the figure passed him by, Kiba felt a small twinge of something uncomfortable. Kiba's nose twitched, trying to put a name to the silhouette that was currently keeping Peta up against the wall by her neck. He moved closer with the intent to bite the figure on the leg when he was swamped by recognition. Kiba stopped in his tracks, instead focusing on speaking clearly.

_Tsume! Let her go._

The figure flinched, turning around slowly. A familiar, tanned face came into view. "…Kiba?"

_It's me._

"Who's _this_?" Tsume inquired, dangling Peta unceremoniously above the floor. Her face was a bit angry, to say the least. Tsume's pale yellow eyes blinked at her, glowering at her in what seemed to be an angered curiosity.

_She's…she's with me._

"Let me down!" she half protested, half choked, clawing at his strong hand. Peta was dropped, planting herself on the floor with a loud thud. She glared at Tsume through her bedraggled ponytail, which was hanging in strips in front of her face. Peta righted herself, vehemently tugging out the scrunchie in her hair with a hiss of pain, seeing as it had gotten tangled in her hair.

Kiba sat down on the floor, relieved that he had found another piece to the puzzle. Tsume was here; he could help with the search of Blue and Hige.

There was a small smidgen of silence, only broken by Peta's feet shifting on the creaky floor.

"With you, huh?" Tsume picked at a piece of his sleeve that had been cut open cleanly, trying to put it back in its original place.

_We came for Blue and Hige,_ Kiba answered, eying his surroundings coolly; now he had more time to observe them. All around him where innumerable shelves, stretching all the way to the ceiling. Each shelf was filled with oddly shaped glasses and beakers; some were jars, filled with something that Kiba couldn't make out from ground level. There were large counters that ran around the room; a massive table stretched out from one side of the room to the other—tanks and all sorts of scientific equipment were piled on it.

He didn't like this place. It reminded him of when he had to break out Cheza from her tank. It was lifeless, and completely deserted, but the room had the same air about it.

"They're up in the attic."

"They are?" Peta asked, brightening immediately.

Tsume gave her a slightly disgusted glance, which she caught on to, albeit a little slowly.

"What's that look for?" she asked glumly, moodily pocketing her scrunchie.

Tsume turned to Kiba, features emotionless again. "I came down to see what had been walking around the living room. I had to check if it was him."

Kiba let his brow furrow. _We should get out of here while there's still time_.

"I second that," Peta snorted, pulling an unpleasant face.

- -

Toboe was uncomfortably aware of a pair of flaming eyes fixed determinedly on him, scrutinizing him and peering at him pitilessly. He turned his head slightly to the right, making a dark dog swim into his view.

_Is there something you'd like to ask me?_

The dog narrowed its eyes, making them turn into slits of yellow. Toboe hoped he hadn't made the dog angry.

_What do you plan on doing?_

Toboe was temporarily stumped. _What do I plan on doing?_ He stopped to ponder the question for a bit, thinking up an answer. _I plan on finding my pack mates, finding Cheza, and getting to Paradise!_

The male canine gave a displeased exhalation. _Find, find, find. Is that what wolves' lives are all about?_

Toboe sat up, a little more alert. _What do you mean?_

_I mean that you never settle down. Your white furred cohort left with my mistress an hour ago on what could be a very disagreeable experience for her,_ the dog answered, sitting down with finality and straightening his shoulders.

_You have a mistress?_ Toboe's questioning tone made the dog provide clarity on the term.

_I most certainly do,_ the dog said, sounding proud now. _She is the most important person to me._

_Is she a good person?_ The wolf asked, becoming more curious. The black dog's attitude faltered.

_Well…she can get a little too angry, _the dog said, _and she swears when that happens. My mistress is the type that eats at someone's patience until they finally snap. _

_Oh…_there wasn't much more to say on Toboe's part. After that portrayal, he wasn't quite sure that he was that eager to meet the younger female in the house.

_What do you call her?_

The dog was surprised again. _I call her mistress…but Nana calls her 'Peta'._

_And what's your name?_

Now the dog sighed, as if he were a little tired of all the questions. _My name is Ahote. _Toboe readied himself for an answer, but Ahote cut him off. _Yes, yes, I know who you are. You should be glad I found you._

There wasn't more time to say anything, because Nana entered the room. She set something unidentifiable in front of Toboe (but it smelled good!), and gestured to it.

"I don't know how you'll like it," she said, "but I hope it will satiate you for the time being."

Toboe looked up at her, his entire countenance a look of sheer relief. She had no idea what kind of memories she was restirring.

- -

Peta coughed as the dust rose up to meet her; they had made their way into the attic, carefully treading up the stairs, making sure every step was stable. She had warned them about the old age of the house, and how some of its woodwork was rotten. Tsume had just turned his head in the other direction and Kiba had remained silent in acknowledgement.

_How responsive,_ she thought glumly, trudging up the final steps before the attic door. Tsume stepped in front of her, completely ignoring her small jump to avoid him.

_Does the guy __**want**__ to step on me or something?!_ Peta watched as he opened the door, the cogs in her brain turning at a nonstop speed.

"Tsume?" a voice from inside the room asked. A head peeked around the corner—it was someone Peta had never seen before. Another guy stared out at her; his brown hair was ruffled and unruly, and one of his hands was stuck lazily in a yellow hoodie. There seemed to be a sort of collar looped around his neck. He didn't see who he expected to see, of course, and his expression contorted into one of puzzlement. "Who're you?"

Peta sighed, drawing a blank, for once. "I don't know, ask them," she grumbled, looking over her shoulder. Out of the murk of the attic, she could still see Kiba's white fur. It reminded her of some sort of an unearthly beacon.

"Kiba!"

Peta stepped aside, allowing the reuniting of the friends to continue without her presence disrupting their meeting. Sure, she couldn't say Kiba was the most agreeable dude in the universe, but the way he spoke about the pack gave him an air of serious conviction—Peta wasn't _that _blind, after all. She could see when something mattered. Just standing in the shadows quietly made her feel like she was intruding, in a way. But heck, she hadn't even done anything wrong! Not with these people, at least…

"Boy, have I had a rough ride," the brown-haired one laughed; he seemed to have a very lighthearted attitude.

"Hige? What's going on out there?" the door of the attic swung open inwardly again and out stepped _another_ person, this time a female. Her attire was simple: it consisted of a black mini-coat with a belt around her waist. There was a red scarf curled around her neck. Somehow, this woman seemed familiar. Peta tilted her head at this stranger's appearance: she couldn't shake the feeling off that she had seen this woman before.

"…Peta?"

Peta started at the sound of her name, and realized it was the woman with the red scarf that had said it.

"Yes…?"

"It's Blue."

Peta's eyes widened in the darkness, realization crashing over her in a cold wave. She composed herself soon enough. "O-oh…hi."

Blue gave a crooked smile and turned to say something to Hige, while Peta's head buzzed with new information.

_So…all of them can do that…illusion thingymaboby? _Peta pinched the bridge of her nose roughly, trying to fight the oncoming headache. _Well…that's just great._

Peta glanced out the window in the attic. The rain had stopped, at least.

Her heart skipped a beat when she saw a black speck climbing over the brow of the hill. She faced the window completely, trying to see through the grimy glass. Forgetting that she had painstakingly cleaned her leather gloves a few months back, she wiped away some of the dirt with her palm, the rawhide of the glove screeching against the casement.

"Ow! What was that sound?" Hige said, trying to alleviate the ringing sound by sticking one a pinky in his left ear.

"Uh…I don't think we should be staying any longer," Peta remarked, throwing a nervous look out the window. "We've got a little company, and I doubt it's welcoming. Does a dark blue…" she squinted through the glass, leering until she was cross eyed, "…Chevrolet ring any bells?"

_Downstairs._

Peta tried hard not jump out of her shoes at the unexpected echo of Kiba's voice. Just like on cue, the newly joined up company moved down the stairs, Peta bringing up the back. For some reason, there was a grave feeling of dread settling upon her shoulders, its claws tickling her neck and black mouth whispering fears in her ear.

They were soon in the large living room again; the car still hadn't reached the house yet, and the brainstorm attacked Peta viciously. She spoke, breaking the ice of silence.

"Hey, Kiba…do you remember about the passage that I told you about?"

Kiba's head swiveled in her direction, golden eyes unblinking.

"It's in the cellar, just beside the tool cupboard," Peta continued, trying not to stumble over her words. "You could all get out of the house…I have to go get my bike."

"Your bike…?" Hige's questioning tone prompted her reply.

"How do you think we got here? By flying?" Peta huffed, folding her arms across her chest. "Anyways, the tunnel leads up over into a small backdrop of the house. Just crawl under the fence and follow the path. It should lead you to the outskirts of the ranch. I'll look for you as soon as I get home."

Peta walked towards the door, and grasped the knob, making white dust clinging to her black glove. "I didn't confuse you, right?"

_We'll find you there._

Peta nodded to the white wolf. "It was nice to meet you," she directed timidly at Tsume, and then gave a small smile to Hige and Blue. She shut the door behind her, and the pack was left alone.

"She's sort of strange," Hige commented, watching her jog away through the French door of the house.

_I suppose she is,_ Kiba agreed briefly, and then looked in the direction of the cellar. _Let's get going._

- -

Shortly after jogging from the house, Peta ran full tilt towards her bike, praying that the person in the ominously dark blue Chevrolet hadn't reached the house yet. When she saw that her bike was untouched and the car had yet to appear, she jumped for joy, running even faster towards the precious vehicle.

Peta was, very frankly, worried. She didn't know whether they'd be able to get back successfully, but a small part of her brain told her that the motley crew could forge the way ahead together and return in one safe piece.

With quick movements borne of urgency, Peta threw open the trunk and hastily clipped the helmet on; she mounted the bike and fiercely kicked it off its stand, simultaneously turning the ignition and making the bike lurch forward.

She coaxed the engine further, and its tires were soon grinding away into the dust, leaving a smoking plume of damp dirt and black motes in the wake of the motorcycle. Peta reached the top of the small hill, and zoomed on downwards, swerving to the left to miss a blur of metallic blue.

Peta knew that this was the car, and she hoped to God that whoever was inside didn't take note of her bike or the license plate. The car was soon a dot in her rear view mirror—it hadn't turned back, but it seemed to be accelerating towards the house instead.

_Oh, please, let them have gotten out,_ Peta prayed silently, repeating the mantra over and over again in her head as she steered the bike into roads that would get her back to her house.

The surroundings passed by in blurs, the colors blending together as they swooshed past her helmet.

Peta looked down to the fuel indicator.

_Empty? Dang, talk about good timing._

She irritably navigated her way through streets, eventually coming to a small gas station. She hadn't frequented this place since…well, since a very long time ago. Peta only dropped by _'Mike's Gas Station'_ to refill Nana's car, and that was only when all the other gas stations were either closed or packed to the brim with customers.

Peta drove the bike to a stop, halting neatly before the gas tanks and the nozzles which fed fuel into various automobiles and motorcycles every day. Sighing, she balanced the bike again and pulled off the helmet, feeling vulnerable and exposed in this place.

_I should have avoided coming here,_ she reprimanded herself, trying to curb the urge to slap her cheek or punch herself in the gut. But, then again, what would have happened if she had been completely out of gas? Where would she go from there?

Putting all these thoughts to rest, Peta reached into her pocket for her wallet and then moved forward to unlatch one of the nozzles from its stand.

_Maybe she's not here today,_ Peta told herself, trying to rationalize her thoughts and tame her distaste.

"Well, well, well…what do we have here? If it isn't good ol' Peta Bryant. Got the old machiney out, didja?"

Peta ground her teeth so hard they started to ache. _I was wrong_. "Buzz off, Meyers."

"What, no insults today? I'm hurt."

Peta viciously stuck the nozzle into the bike's receiving hole and waited for the fuel to fill up her motorcycle. She watched the digital numbers of the counting meter flicker and increase in amount. "I'm not in the mood."

"You poor thing…what happened? Did something crawl up your ass and _die_?"

Peta tightened her hold on the gas nozzle, trying hard not to incinerate the bleach-haired girl beside her with a glare. "Get _lost_, Meyers."

"What's the matter with you today? Misplaced your spirit?"

Peta chuckled grimly. "What kind of a 'tough' girl uses the word 'misplaced'?"

There was silence as the bike chugged down benzene. Peta pulled the nozzle out, replacing it and paying the machine with money from her wallet. She heard the girl speak again as she neared her motorcycle.

"Hey, wait, before you go…I've got something to give you."

Peta felt a hand on her shoulder turning her around. She grabbed the fist as it closed in on her face, and clenched on the hand, hearing a few cracks come from beneath her fingers. The girl yelped in protest.

"I haven't gotten _that_ rusty. You disappoint me, _Daisy_," Peta sneered, throwing away Daisy's fist. Peta closed the distance between her and the motorcycle, getting on it swiftly. She spent no time in looking back whilst putting on the helmet.

As Peta drove off, she regretted ever stopping.

- -

_**A/n:**_ And, chapter eight is officially out! Woohoo! Things are getting more interesante, no? –evil laughter- Ah, well, there are many more ideas floating about in my brain, so don't think that the cliffhangers are going to stop. :] Haha, it _wasn't_ Darcia at the beginning of the chapter. See? Told you that all the characters would be here. Now, there's only one more major character to go… ; )

One more thing before I go...could you please check out my new story? Sounds kinda stupid, I know, but I'd like to see what you think.

**_THANK YOU FOR YOUR REVIEWS!_**

**Shout-outs!**

**Bells of Requiem – **Thank you for the nice compliments. I love describing things, which is why I hate reading stories that only consist of dialogue. There's only one story that I absolutely love on , and in that format, but even that has lovely descriptions. Nope, wasn't Darcia, now was it? XD He was a sweet pup. And in this case, he still _is_. : )

**thedarkerexplanation – **You don't know how happy that comment made me. I'm really glad that my story can keep you engaged and reading without getting boring. Sorry, Peta ain't turning into a wolf any time soon. –sweatdrop- They sure were. I love the scenes between them. :D You can go on. By all means! XD Well, here is the next installment. Hope you liked it.

**Asylum-Runaway – **Haha, thank you. I love the phrase 'top-notch.' Sorry about the cliffhangers. XD I love making them. I hope you liked this update! : )

**rayne156 – **Well, would you like it to be? Cliffhangers always give the reader ideas, don't you think? Well, here's the update. Hope you enjoyed. : )

**TheBeastlyKunoichi – **Yes, this evil deed shall be present in many of the chapters, unfortunately. I love suspense in a story. Of course it was Toboe! :D I'm glad you think that'd be cute in the story. Well, if see some people asking for it (which I do) I'll see what can happen in the fanfiction. : )

**mayanpaw – **The dreaded cliffhanger, eh? Ah, well, here's the chapter. :D Haha, yes, my hand is fine now, and I'm so grateful for it. I can finally do all the things I couldn't previously. I'm very happy you 'just love this fic'. : )

**ShadowYashi – **It pretty much _did_ suck about my hand, but it's all good now. Yes, it was Toboe. –hands you a Wolf's Rain collage- XD Your question was answered in the chapter, I think. Yes, he was hurt. : ( I'm glad you enjoyed it. : )

**iwalkinthelight – **Freaky owners no kidding. O_O But it'd be cool to go inside, eh? :O If I could get my hands on the owners, I'd throw them in jail…but that's what happened. To one of them, at least. I hope you enjoyed the chapter. : )

**Caged Bird in Demon Arms – **Yes, they did. I must have added one or two stories to my favorites because of it. -.- Yes, sort of haunted, I guess. XD They were lucky this time…will it stay that way? ; ) Haha, thanks for the review. : )


	9. Cookbooks and Memories

_**Chapter 9**_

_Running._

_Each foot landing on the ground sent jars of vibration all the way up her spine, pitilessly cutting through her scratches and opening up the deep wounds acquired earlier on. _

_Breathe, step, trip, breathe. _

_Keep your balance._

_Don't stumble._

_Keep blinking._

_Follow the light._

_Her battered hand rested on the door, swinging it open; the limb fell back, its weight leaden to its owner as it rested at the side of a torn jacket and ripped jeans. The girl was a mess. Her hair was short—it hung to her chin, but did not look well kept. In fact, it was hanging in such a slapdash manner that the girl herself couldn't tell where it stopped and started. _

_She remembered the razor and the scissors; she remembered the hair falling out in chunks behind her, fluttering to the ground and then blown away by the autumn wind and into the night. She remembered them holding her down. _

_She had betrayed them._

_This was the price._

_"Peta? Peta! Child, what happened to you?!"_

_The girl craned her head upwards, catching sight of Nana shooting up from her rocking chair and running as quickly as her aged body would allow towards her granddaughter. _

_"You've been out for hours...what were you doing?"_

_Peta leaned over, only just being caught by Nana as she slumped in the general direction of down. Before falling asleep, she murmured a small phrase in a hoarse voice; blearily, Peta guessed that she hadn't had any water since the morning._

_"Never again..."_

- -

Peta's body jerked as she came out of slumber; she didn't bolt upright, like she was used to doing. Instead, she lay back, trying to ignore the fact that her pillow was practically complaining about the amount of sweat on it. Vaguely, she realized that it was early morning.

The clock on her nightstand blared its phosphorescent green numbers out through the darkness: 5 AM.

It was no use exciting these stupid memories anymore.

She already got enough fright as it was from the fragments she saw in her sleep, so it wouldn't really help anyway if she were to panic about it. Peta slowly let her jaw unclench, feeling the muscles contract painfully as she relaxed her death bite.

Relief would come soon, as she very well knew.

It had been such an eventful day yesterday—well, that's what all the days seemed to be like now, wasn't it? A small smile creased Peta's lips when she thought about her arrival at home. She had certainly _not_ expected yet _another_ wolf sitting on her couch.

- -

_"Nana, I'm home!" _

_Peta's grip on the door knob slipped away when she saw Ahote sitting patiently behind the little coffee table in the living room. The dog barked and immediately came up to greet her; Peta was expecting him with open arms, quite literally, too. She had bent her knees and rolled back on the balls of her heels to hug Ahote when she spotted the brown shape reclining on the sofa._

_"Ah, Peta," Nana drifted out of the kitchen, prim and proper as ever. "We have a visitor."_

_"We seem to have lots of those lately," Peta noted, and ruffled Ahote's forehead fur once more before standing up. _

_"This is Toboe," Nana introduced, gesturing to the wolf currently sitting on the furniture. Peta looked at him—he didn't really give the impression of 'mature' to her, but that didn't mean his fur wasn't pretty. What was odd, though, was that the pup had a string of bangles around one leg. They jingled quietly as he got up._

_**It's nice to meet you...**_

_Oh, yeah, he was definitely young. _

_Peta smiled at him, giving the wolf a little wave. These packmates had such different ways of speaking, and no doubt, different personalities. _

_"The pleasure's all mine," she returned, and then swiveled around to face Nana. "I'm going upstairs for a little while to get refreshed...after that, I'm taking Den out to search for the others. They should be bordering the ranch in about an hour's time."_

_Nana hadn't the slightest clue what Peta was talking about, but she agreed anyway._

_"Be careful when you reach the creek. The storm might have brought in snakes," Nana warned, giving Peta a grave look. Her granddaughter only nodded._

_"Den's a smart horse. We'll be fine."_

_And with that, Peta marched up the stairs, leaving Toboe in curiosity. His questions only became more when he heard what she was muttering just before she shut her bedroom door to get changed. _

_"It's a curse...a curse!"_

_Nana waved away Peta's words, not wanting to offend Toboe by revealing that the girl was referring to her close quarters with what used to be something that existed only in science-fiction novels. _

_-_ -

Peta turned on her side, ignoring her tightened throat and increased heart rate. Blasted images. Why didn't they just go away? Deciding that she couldn't sleep anymore, Peta righted herself, sitting in her bed amidst a sea of tangled bed sheets.

Groaning softly, Peta put her face in her hands, hoping that the action would somehow punch her retinas into working normally and not producing things she didn't want to see. Peta looked out the window, and found that the morning, as always, was crisp and cool.

It _looked_ that way, at least.

It was certain that her house now had more inhabitants than it ever had ever since Peta had moved in herself. Now taking _another _decision, Peta let herself drop back into bed. She hated this back and forth method that she used when she couldn't be sure of something.

Peta buried her head under her pillow, breathing in the minty scent of the mattress and thinking about the huge influx of canine life in the floor below her.

Today she'd have to go grocery shopping. There was absolutely nothing inside the house's cupboards. Besides, she also had to stop by the apothecary to buy more feed for the horses. Peta gave another groan when she realized that she had to buy feed—buying feed meant taking the _truck._ The grumpy, clunky, almost-falling-apart truck that gave her trouble every step of the way.

The truck was usually referred to as a car, because they didn't use the compartment in the back, but it wasn't so in this case.

Peta fidgeted for a little more before leaping out of bed and feverishly reaching for the top of her wardrobe. She moved her hand about until her fingers brushed against the back of a book with a familiar texture. Standing on her tip toes, Peta grabbed the book and sunk back to her real height, drawing the book back with her.

As she plodded back to her bed, she undid the black string that sealed the book weakly shut, and watched as it fell open before her. A faint scent of Javanese coffee wafted up from the book's brittle pages, and tingled her senses.

The book's pages were covered in swirling, black script; it was all measurements, ingredients and instructions as to how to cook what the title above mentioned. Peta turned the pages until they came to a fluttering stop as the aroma of the coffee increased.

The paper had been doused in it years ago, during the making of the book itself.

- -

_"Peta, honey, we can't use Javanese coffee," said a black haired woman, appraising her daughter carefully. "It's extremely expensive." _

_"A five year old shouldn't know what Javanese coffee is in the first place," her husband offered, flicking the newspaper he was reading to a new page. _

_"She doesn't," the woman countered. "She just knows its pricey."_

_"It smells good!" the little girl protested, balling her fists and puffing out her cheeks in a comical manner. Her mother laughed._

_"I agree." She bent down and picked up the girl, resting her against her hip. The woman gave Peta a kiss on the cheek, and the girl pulled away with a disgusted face, wiping the 'afflicted' area. Her mother laughed. "We're raising a spoiled child, Jeff."_

_"As if I don't know." The only proof that Jeff had heard them was the rustle of the newspaper and his voice._

_"Mama, does dad hate me?" Peta asked, tugging on the collar of her mother's shirt. _

_The newspaper jerked downwards, revealing a messy mop of chocolate-brown hair, whose bangs were hanging over a pair of half-moon spectacles. The green eyes behind the said spectacles widened. "Hate you? Wherever did you get that idea?"_

_"You called me spoiled!" Peta accused, waving a fist in his direction. _

_"I didn't mean it, sweetie."_

_"How do I know?!"_

_"I'm your father!"_

_"That doesn't account for anything!"_

_"A little help here? Hey, Hana! Why are you **laughing**? Our daughter is turning six in a week and she knows how to use the word 'account'! Doesn't that concern you?"_

_Hana only chuckled louder. Both her daughter and husband turned to look at her, their mouths hanging open._

_"What do you find so funny?"_

_"You, sir, are the light of my life!" Hana proclaimed, and marched over to her husband, kissing him soundly on the lips, making all his protests die out immediately. Peta clapped her small hands together and made a small whooping sound. Jeff pulled away, watching his daughter with an arched eyebrow._

_"She knows too much for her own good," he noted grimly, making Hana smile widely. _

_"**She** is just fine," Hana responded, patting Jeff's shoulder in assurance. "Peta will turn out to be a beautiful young woman. Isn't that right, Peta?"_

_The girl in question shook her head in determination. Her parents, curious, waited for her answer._

_"No! I won't be human. I'm going to be a horse when I grow up!"_

- -

Peta still blushed in embarrassment when she thought about that. And Peta rarely, if ever, blushed. Shaking her head, she turned the page again until she came to another recipe, this one unfinished.

- -

_"Peta, your mom isn't feeling very well today," Jeff said quietly, helping his wife to sit on a living room chair. "You'll have to wait till tomorrow to finish the recipe, honey."_

_The ten year old girl nodded her head wordlessly, watching her mother with large brown eyes. Hana wasn't as lively as she used to be. Her skin had taken on a sort of sickly pallor to it, and she seemed to get tired so much more easily now. She didn't even go out to the stables anymore.  
_

_"Is mama going to be alright?" Peta whispered, taking one of Hana's pallid hands in her tiny palms. _

_"I'll be fine," Hana assured her, patting her daughter's hands weakly. "We'll finish the recipe. You'll see."_

_Giving no reply, Peta crawled into her mother's lap, looping her short arms around Hana's neck to provide some meager comfort. Something was gravely wrong. She just didn't know what. Gratefully, Hana took Peta into her embrace and buried her face into her daughter's black hair. Only after a few moments did Peta realize that her mother's arms were shaking._

_She felt something moist drip down her neck, soaking her white shirt. Peta did not have to look up to know that her mother was crying. _

_"Mama?"_

_"It's alright, darling. Mama's only a little sick, that's all," was Hana's choked answer. Her hug tightened. _

_In the decade that was her life, Peta could never have imagined her mother crying. Her mother was a strong person. She never gave into anything, no matter the obstacle. What was different now? _

_"I'm sorry," Hana whispered, bringing her forehead to the crook of Peta's neck. "I'm sorry for leaving you behind."_

_"Hana, don't say that," Jeff reprimanded softly, now kneeling beside the chair and rubbing Hana's back reassuringly. His heart screamed in grief when he saw Hana shake her head slowly. He sat beside the two females that were the pillars of support in his life, and drew them to his chest in an embrace. _

_Peta didn't know what was going on. She could hear her father's words and hushed comforts, directed at her mother. He rocked them slowly, side to side, trying to tame Hana's strangled sobs. _

_Without knowing why, Peta was crying, too. _

_- -_

Peta put the book to the side forcefully, snapping the cover shut.

_Sorry, eh?_ she thought, casting a wistful gaze over the cookbook. 'Sorry' hadn't been enough to cut it.

"Peta!"

Nana's voice was a harsh wake up call after all her reminiscing, so it wasn't surprising that Peta nearly fell out of the bed due to shock.

"Breakfast is ready!"

The young woman sighed, letting her head loll back before she shouted back her answer. "I'll be down in a minute!"

- -

The happiest wolf downstairs must have been Hige. It was the conclusion Kiba had arrived to. Yes, they were all hungry, but none could surpass Hige's bottomless stomach.

"Peta! Breakfast is ready!"

There was silence as he listened for the answer. It came, sure enough, as noisy as he had anticipated.

"That chick has a loud voice," Hige observed, trying not to move too much from his spot. Blue had fallen asleep on his shoulder, and he didn't want to wake her just yet. She was tired, very much so; the last few nights had been trying for all of them. She must have felt safe—Blue was finally getting a full sleep with no interruptions. The wolves (even if one of them didn't admit it) felt relieved to have a roof over their heads.

It was quite astonishing in of itself, seeing as wolves live most of their lives outdoors.

Kiba spotted Peta descending the stairs, looking just a tad worse for wear. He wondered if she had slept at all, but soon found the thought completely unnecessary and dismissed it from his mind. He watched as Peta slipped on the second stair, and came tumbling down to the floor, landing quite painfully on her back.

"Crap," she croaked, rubbing the back of her head with one hand.

"Are you alright?" Toboe asked from his seat on the couch, his eyes wide. _What a trip!_

"Yeah, just fine, thank you," Peta affirmed, waving an arm in his general direction. She got up, steadying herself by gripping the stairway's rail. Peta blinked once or twice before smiling at them. "Good morning!"

"Morning," Hige and Toboe returned. Kiba only nodded. Blue was asleep, so she couldn't really have done anything (how come she hadn't woken up with all the racket?) and Tsume was being his usual self.

Peta sent what she hoped was a half-searing glare in Kiba's direction. Would it kill him to say something? Tsume was another matter—Peta had found out that she and the gray wolf could start an argument over virtually anything on the way back to the house yesterday evening.

"Good morning, Peta."

"Morning, Nana," she said, walking across the room and into the kitchen. "Where's Ahote?"

"Playing with the sheep."

"Ah, I see. What's for breakfast?"

"Eggs, waffles, orange juice. Nothing special."

Peta rubbed her hands together in anticipation. "I utterly disagree." She turned around. "Shall we eat? And after breakfast, I can show you guys somewhere where you can hunt game for yourselves."

_That's right,_ Kiba thought vaguely. She had promised to do that a day after he had arrived, but obvious circumstances had postponed the event.

Hige gently shook Blue awake. She opened her eyes slowly, and found herself looking at Hige's face. "Huh...?"

"It's morning, and we're about to have breakfast," Hige informed her. Blue smiled.

"You must be happy."

"I am, I am," Hige said cheerfully, stretching his arms above his head. "Ah, I'm so stiff!"

"Well, bon apetit, everyone," Peta said, albeit halfheartedly. Tsume was about to open his mouth to protest, probably to say something stinging as to why he wouldn't eat at the table with the rest of them (or with the _humans_) when the phone rang.

"I'll get it," Peta told Nana, walking over to the counter where the phone was situated. She picked it up and put to her ear. "Hello, Bryant residence."

There was silence as the garble of the other person's voice came through the phone's reciever. Peta's expression turned tense. "Oh, hi." The voice on the other line replied again. Kiba distinguished it as female. "Yeah...no, why'd you ask? I know, it's in five days. No...we're not going anywhere...oh, God, no. Aunt Gloria, you can't! We're really, really busy. It's uh—" Peta lost her confidence in a wretched moment before coming up with a not very believable excuse, "—duck season! Yeah, it's duck season, and we have to chase them away from the farm. We won't have time."

She winced as the lie came out. There was a loud laugh from the phone.

Everyone in the room was completely still.

"You can't do that," Peta persisted. "I told you, Auntie. We've got no _time_."

There was a click and a beep as the person on the other line hung up. Peta's tanned complexion paled quite a fair bit as she stared at the phone. "We're screwed," she breathed, setting the phone down again.

"Peta...?" Nana was the first to recover.

"I know some of you won't like this," Peta said, rubbing her temples with her fingertips, "but it's something that happens every year...we'll just have to be more careful this time."

"What are you talking about?" Blue asked, her tone questioning.

"My Aunt Gloria has a seven year old son called Jamie," Peta explained, "and they come down from Las Vegas to see us. Aunt Gloria has a tough job that keeps her going, so she usually leaves Jamie here with us for a short period of time."

"Don't tell me..."

Peta sighed tiredly. She was now sure her life couldn't get any worse.

"Jamie is visiting the day after tomorrow."

- -

_**A/n:**_ Whatever shall they do? :O Boy, have I been busy writing lately! I've gotten up the prologue for a Kingdom Hearts story and a FFVII oneshot which can possibly be continued. The merciless plot bunnies are hunting me down! XD This chapter was pretty...morbid, you can say. O_O Lots and lots of flashbacks, but you won't see those a lot in the times to come. Next chapter will be fairly humorous. :D

**Shout-outs!**

**ShadowYashi – **They sure are. There's only one more character to squeeze in...I've got a pretty evil idea about it. :]

**TheBeastlyKunoichi – **Daisy ain't a fun person, I can tell you that from now. I can predict your dislike for her will only increase as the story continues. Darcia flipping out will be fun to write. :P Nana's pretty lenient, but I know I couldn't live with so many strangers at once. XD

**Caged Bird in Demon Arms – **Yep, she certainly does. Poor thing. Ah, well, she'll get over it soon. XD

**iwalkinthelight – **You shall see in the chapters to come, my friend! I cannot disclose any information as of now, but action isn't going to pipe down any time soon. I got the name Ahote from a Native American name web site. It means 'restless one.' Fits him, doesn't it? : )

**biggest anime fan – **Haha, the cliffies aren't stopping! I guess that's how I write. Here's the next chapter. Hopefully, it came up to par for you guys.

**mayanpaw – **Haha, Toboe isn't mine, but I'm glad you liked the way I wrote him. One of the things I'm most unsure about fanfiction is whether I get the characters correct or not. :l I hope I did a good job. XD

**rayne156** – I think you have convinced me, my friend. I shall see where the story will go. ; ) I'm glad you like it so much. : )

**WhiteWolfShaera – **I love odd details! :D Yes, antagonists seem to do that, don't they? XD I hope you liked this chapter. : )


	10. Long Time, No Scream

_**Chapter 10**_

Peta groaned, rubbing at her closed eyes, trying to banish the headache pounding inside the corridors of her mind. She laid back on the worn leather seat of the truck, somehow hoping to melt into the vehicle and disappear from the face of the world. Today was the day Jamie was arriving, and she only had about four hours to enjoy a world of partial freedom.

"...Are you alright?"

"Oh, perfectly fine," Peta assured Toboe, who was looking at her curiously, wondering what had elicited her slump. "Just...uh...resting."

"Ah...where are we?"

Peta blinked at him, and the memory that Toboe knew nothing of Glenwood Springs came back to smack her in the face. She rose up in her seat, surveying her surroundings. The truck had been stopped in a parking lot just outside the animal feed apothecary.

"We're here to get some food for the horses and sheep," she answered, opening the door and sliding outside smoothly. The concrete was firm and her steps were soundless under her working boots. Toboe followed, eager to see what this new place was like.

He seemed quite eager in general, Peta had come to discover, and it was quite endearing. His questions were sometimes not carefully directed, but if they weren't, he realized it immediately and retracted his question with many apologies. Toboe was also kind and observant. Peta had decided that if she ever had had a little brother, it'd be someone like him.

The door of the apothecary swung inwardly as Peta pushed it and stepped inside. She was instantly bombarded by the smell of hay and dry food, a scent that she had learned to inhale without complaint due to her entire life being spent on farms. She looked carefully over her shoulder to see Toboe desperately trying not to wrinkle his nose or scrunch it up.

Peta knew his sense of smell must be drastically evolved than any human's; what was a small irritation to humans (for example, trash) it was probably quite a horrid stink to him. She admired his persistence as he followed her into the store. And then, quite unexpectedly, he gave a shocking sneeze that made him jump up slightly.

Peta laughed, falling back to pat him on the shoulder. "If the smell's bothering you, you should head on outside."

Toboe shook his head firmly. "No! I'll stay right here."

She chuckled again. "Do what you want."

Peta turned and continued into the store, weaving through the enormous bags of dried food and collection of bedding until she came to the aisle that she wanted. When she had spotted the large package of feed that she needed, she wanted to go ask the owner to help her take it out to the truck. It was way too heavy for Peta alone.

She vaguely heard Toboe's pattering footsteps behind her, but froze when she picked up on another, all too familiar sound.

"And then she told me to 'get lost!' Can you believe her, the little whelp?"

There was a shuffle of material as the shop owner sorted out various receipts with his work-battered hands. "Daisy, I'm sure it wasn't _that_ bad. Peta's a nice girl. Always helpful."

"Helpful my foot! She's nothing but a nuisance, and you know that! She's like a leech—stuck here after her mom died or whatever, and's never left since then!"

Toboe watched as the aforementioned young woman's back became rigid, making her appear like she had swallowed a steel rod.

"Now, now, Daisy. Don't say stuff like that. Peta has always been kind and nothing but a dear around these parts. I must say, she has a really short fuse, but other than that, she's reasonably peaceful."

"Ask _me_ whether she's been peaceful," Daisy answered, her voice muffled slightly due to the fact that she now had a cigarette between her lips. "Wif all dat shnooping around when we were shixteen."

"What'd I tell you about smoking in the shop?"

There was no answer.

"Get out before you set fire to my things."

Daisy laughed dryly, the smoke rising in little rings around her head. "Gotcha, Mr. Rivera."

"Top of the morning," Peta remarked tersely as she stepped into the aisle, her ire only just concealed. Daisy just arched an eyebrow in her direction and continued blowing smoke in and out of her mouth and nostrils. Peta stared at the cigarette for a while, and then turned her attention to Mr. Rivera.

"Hello, Peta," he told her, putting away all the jumbled receipts. "What can I do for you today?"

"I just need some help getting the feed to the truck." She pointed over her shoulder to the designated isle. "Here, I'll pay you now." Peta pulled out a few dollars and laid it on the counter. She had purchased feed so many times she knew the exact amount of money needed.

"Okay. It's the Ford pickup, right?"

"Right."

Mr. Rivera smiled at Peta, and then hustled away, flexing his hands in preparation for lifting the load of the feed to the truck. That left Daisy, Toboe and Peta alone in the small space with the counter. Daisy smirked at the silence as she stared at Peta's hair, which brushed comfortably against her shoulder blades in a low ponytail.

"Hey, Bryant, what d'you say about a haircut? I think it's fine time you had one." Daisy abruptly turned the cigarette around in her fingers, the slow-burning end sticking outward. The glowing ash neared Peta's ponytail, but the owner of the ponytail grabbed Daisy's hand at the wrist and swerved it around so it was now facing the bleach-haired girl again.

"Seriously, you've got to get less predictable moves," Peta half-snarled, pushing the cigarette surely into Daisy's leather jacket. The cancer stick promptly fizzled out with a small spark, burning a hole through the thin material. Daisy's muddy eyes boggled at the sight.

"What did you do, you freak?!"

Peta calmly turned on her heel, walking past a very shocked Toboe. "Let's get going," she whispered lowly, and Toboe nodded, looking distant.

"Don't turn your back on me, Bryant!"

Peta did not turn to look at Daisy, but she gave an answer, her voice sounding sharper than Toboe had ever heard it before. "I'm done taking orders from you."

There was quiet after that, and Peta walked out, Toboe following—he stopped to look back at Daisy, who was furiously seething, fists clenched. Before they exited, he witnessed Daisy stomping her foot so hard on the ground he heard the smack of the sole of her shoe. He averted his attention to Peta, now curious that the invisible tension was gone.

"What was that all about?"

Peta sighed, looking deflated. "It's a very stupid story...I know that's not a good excuse, but I...that stuff is long gone. Not important."

Before he could ask her anything again, they had come to a stop before Peta's pickup truck. Mr. Rivera was currently hauling the feed into the back of the truck, and Peta rushed to help him when she saw that he was struggling.

Toboe watched her as she went. She was quite a bizarre person—one of the most prominent questions in his mind was about the hand of hospitality she and Nana had extended. Where he was from, wolves were usually shot and considered evil creatures; Peta had assured her that it was very much like that in many countries of this strange place, but she had also told him that there were people who loved wolves and animals very much. The very fact puzzled him. Besides Grandma, who had taken care of him, he knew no other human that was affectionate towards animals.

"Hey, Toboe! Let's get going!"

The voice startled him out of his thoughts, and he craned his head upwards to the sight of the packed pickup truck. Peta was gesturing him to come inside, and he complied by jumping inside the car and settling himself into the seat beside Peta.

"See you, Mr. Rivera!" she called whilst waving a hand out of the window. Mr. Rivera smiled and waved back. He eventually became a small dot in the distance as they drove away, heading back towards Peta's house.

- -

"What are those for?" Hige asked, observing Nana taking out a tray and shoving another one laden with golden looking blobs into the oven. Nana untied the apron from her waist and set it aside.

"They are cookies. For Jamie," she answered simply, turning the knob on the oven to toggle the temperature at which the cookies would bake. "To take his mind off of...doing other things."

Absently, Hige remembered what Peta had told them in the morning.

_Peta sat down at the couch, looking a little grim. "I'd like you all to know three things about Jamie," she said, her tone completely serious. Things were silent. Even Tsume stole a look at her out of the corner of his eye. "Firstly, Jamie is a walking disaster." Peta pulled a slightly sour face at the sound of her sentence. "He also is extremely inquisitive...and clumsy. But, that doesn't mean he isn't a lovable kid or whatever, and if he's mistreated, you sure are going to get it."_

Hige then recalled the memory of Kiba telling him that Peta had treated him similarly when he had awoken in the house, delivering a small threat concerning the animals of the farm. All his ideas were interrupted when the front door of the house opened, revealing Peta and Toboe, Ahote following closely behind.

Hige did not fail to notice that Peta had a firm grip around Ahote's red collar.

"Hello there," she greeted, catching sight of him in the doorway. "Oh, something smells good. Hey, Nana! Did you make cookies?"

"I did," Nana replied, smiling ever so slightly.

Peta turned around, and squinted out the window, giving a small sigh. "Good. No sign of them..._yet_." And then, to herself, "God, how am I going to get through this?"

She didn't even _want_ to know what Jamie's thoughts would be on the new additions to the inhabitants of the house. Knowing him, he'd go around blurting embarrassing things or just breaking whatever comes into contact with this little hands.

Peta stretched, and opened the front door again, taking a deep breath of the fresh air. "I'm off to the stables!" Well, the stables couldn't really be _called_ stables since it was only two stalls...

Nana nodded, and Peta shut the door behind her.

- -

Peta picked up a strand of hay and twirled it idly between her fingers, finally blowing it away with a puff of air. How long had she been here? Who knows... She looked up to the stall door; Den's great big ebony head was staring back at her. His muzzle lowered a little more, and he nibbled at her hair, tickling her scalp.

"Hey there," she said softly, petting his nose and feeding him a spare bit of apple. "Sorry that I haven't been riding you lately...things have gotten too busy." Den tilted his head towards her, his expression saying 'I understand.' She reached up to rub Den's white blaze, making the horse jerk his head further down.

Peta stood, now laughing as the equine sniffed through her pockets for any possible goodies. "Nope, don't have any treats. Sorry, Den."

Things were quiet for a little more until Peta's ears picked up on a faint, but familiar sound. It made her groan. Had time really passed that fast? The sound drew nearer—it was the distinct coughing of an engine. She knew the image too well in her mind. The old Cadillac convertible was most likely puttering down the road with two _very_ well known passengers in the seats.

"Gotta go, big boy. Will be back soon." Peta leaned forward and kissed Den on the cheek, patting him for one last time before walking out of the stables and towards the front of the house. She spotted the chunky figure of the convertible coming down the road and braced herself for a lot of exuberance.

"What is that?"

Peta jumped upwards at the unexpected sound of a voice. When she settled, she turned around, already knowing who it was. "Will you _quit_ creeping up on me like that?! It's getting annoying!"

Kiba simply stared at her, his question still hanging in the air. Peta sighed.

"_That _is Aunt Gloria's car," she said, turning her head back towards the road. The car had come to a stop. "You'd better get in the house..."

When she had looked back again, he was gone.

- -

Kiba watched the scene from the window of the house. Next to him was Toboe, who was also peering outside, trying to see what the infamous Jamie looked like. Hige was simply viewing what he could from his seat, and Blue was next to him. Tsume was only glancing out of the corners of his eyes.

Kiba saw the door of the roofless car swing open. Out jumped a short figure, running with surprising speed towards Peta. The little boy tripped, his face contorting in shock—Peta was no different as she rushed forward and hooked her arms underneath the boy's shoulders, successfully keeping him from crashing into the ground.

"Peta! Peta!" the little boy was saying, waving his arms around. The young woman picked the boy up, and he quickly snaked his hands around her neck, pulling her close in a tight embrace. Another shape came up the road, coming to stand next to Peta.

"Hey, Auntie."

"Hi there, dear. Jamie, don't strangle your cousin."

"Sorry, mom."

"That's better, hun."

Peta shot her Aunt a brief smile. "How's the company going?" Aunt Gloria's face fell marginally, eyebrows dipping to connect in a small 'v.'

"Things have been better since last time. The papers are out, though."

The black-haired girl's stance relaxed. She sagged slightly with Jamie's added weight. "That's good to know...does he have visitation rights?"

"I'm trying," was all Aunt Gloria said. Peta held Jamie up with one hand while she patted her aunt's shoulder. "Nah, don't worry about me. Worry about this monster here! He's been getting bigger and bigger. Isn't that right, Jamie?"

"I've gotten taller!" the boy proclaimed proudly, puffing out his chest. "I've grown six inches!"

"Wow," Peta laughed, "you'll be all grown up very soon."

"I should be going..." Aunt Gloria said, mussing up Jamie's hair for a last time. "You be good, squirt. Comprende? See you around, Peta."

"Bye."

Jamie nodded enthusiastically and waved at a faster speed that Kiba thought possible as his mother drove off in the car again. Peta bent down and set the young child on the floor, and then he pointed towards the door.

"Cookies?"

"Nana baked them just for you," Peta assured him, getting a hold of his jacket, just to make sure he didn't trip again. He watched as they neared the house. By the time Jamie had opened the door, Kiba was sure he didn't want to meet the little boy...but it was a little late for such thoughts.

Jamie exploded into the house like a colorful whirlwind, completely oblivious of the five strangers sitting in the living room as he barreled into Nana—which was not approved of by Peta—and hinged onto her, shouting: "Gramma!"

For the first time during the days he had spent here, Kiba saw Nana give a fully-fledged and genuinely happy smile.

"How's Jamie?"

"Good, good! I'm hungry," Jamie exclaimed, flailing about. There seemed to be too much energy pent up in this short human child. He was set down again, but this time he swerved around to look at the house. When he caught sight of the five wolves in the living room, he seemed to come to a pause. Peta arched an eyebrow at Jamie, who turned around with a mask of wonder on his countenance.

"Peta...big doggies!" he said, utterly awed into obedience. Peta's brown eyes widened at the observation. She took a step closer to her tiny relative.

"Uh...Jamie? Where do you see doggies?"

"There!" Jamie said confidently, pointing in the direction of Kiba. "White, black, gray and brown!"

Five heads turned to look at Jamie, and the little boy was cowed back, just a bit. Jamie regained his courage, and squinted at them, as if he were trying to convince himself about something. He leaned back, and rubbed his chin thoughtfully with a delicately built hand.

"Now they're like me," Jamie said, furrowing his brow in confusion. He turned back to Peta abruptly. "Where are the cookies?"

Peta's mouth twitched with a disbelieving smile. "Jamie...aren't you going to say hello?"

The little boy turned back to look at the wolves again. He gave a tentative finger wave to all of them. "Hi. I'm Jamie."

_As if we don't know_, Kiba thought.

"My mom says I shouldn't talk to strangers," Jamie shrugged, "I don't remember you."

Peta curbed the urge to cover Jamie's mouth with her hand to plug any other speech coming forth from his voice box. The way he was going was a perfect recipe to instant dislike by Tsume, who no doubt didn't like the idea of Jamie visiting in the first place. And, as Peta had deduced, Tsume's dislike was not to be taken lightly.

"Hey, Peta, what's this?"

"Jamie! Don't touch—"

It was a little too late to stop Jamie's hand from reaching out to the counter and pulling the overhanging fabric there. That caused the tray _on_ the fabric to slip, and quite ironically, to land on Peta's head, who was currently trying to get Jamie _away _from said tray so he wouldn't get hurt. There was a horrendous clang as the unused tray came into contact with the crown of her head. The tray clattered to the ground, where it lay, ignored.

"Yeow! Jamie, what'd I tell you about _touching _things?!"

"Sorry, sorry! I didn't mean it!"

Blue found herself chuckling at the scene of Peta rubbing her head furiously whilst Jamie apologized with tears in his large eyes. They seemed to fit together well, even if Jamie was, as Peta had said: 'A walking disaster.'

"Come on—outside with you, before you kill us all."

"Peta, he isn't that bad," Toboe offered, looking hopeful. "He's only curious."

"You haven't seen anything yet," Peta assured him, taking Jamie by the hand. "I left Jamie alone with my fish tank once. It was the biggest mistake I ever made." Despite her morbid comment, Peta laughed at it and nudged Jamie outside. "C'mon, tough guy. Wanna play a game of catch with Ahote?"

"_Ahote!_"

"That's right. That's one dog you can hug."

"Let's go, let's go!"

"Ouch! Jamie, _don't pull_!"

"Sorry."

- -

Nana set out the last of the cookies on the living room table, taking care not to burn herself as she arranged them on the plate.

"You can take one, if you want."

"Thank you," Hige told her, nabbing one nimbly from the tray. But, as soon as he bit into it: "That's hot!"

"Wait for it to cool," Blue advised wisely, leaning against the wall and staring out the window. For as far as the eye could see, there was grass—swaying green sheaves of uneven blades that slipped down into valleys and ran around the mountains in the distance. Never before had she seen such an open space.

The house was beautiful—simple, but cozy and homey in its own way. She liked the feeling it gave her. And yet, she couldn't shake off the little voice at the back of her head nagging at her and telling her something was going to happen, and that it wouldn't be pleasant. After many hardships and heartaches, her brain had learned to trust this gut instinct.

"You okay?" Hige asked, moving closer to her, cookie still in hand. Blue looked at him, a smile curling her lips.

"I'm well." She leaned her head on his shoulder. "Very well."

- -

Peta sat down in the grass, exhausted by Jamie's running about. Ahote seemed to be perfectly fine with all this exercise, but she wasn't. Peta inhaled forcefully, clearing her lungs and her mind. Suddenly, she was pelted from behind by a powerful force.

"Are you tie-_ie_-red?" Jamie's voice whined, and Peta rolled her eyes.

"Unlike you, I don't have reserves of strength that last for hours on end," she answered him, catching Jamie with her hands and hauling him onto her lap. Ahote soon joined them, tail wagging madly.

An idea appeared in Peta's head, and she leaned forward, tickling Jamie remorselessly until he rolled on the ground with mirth, begging her to stop.

"Who's the helpless one now, eh?"

Ahote circled around them, sniffing the air suspiciously. Peta stopped her actions and turned to look at her dog.

"Ahote...?"

There was silence in the small clearing—the wind could be heard, running through the grass on light feet. And then, Peta was shocked to hear a growling coming from Ahote's throat, rumbling deeply in his gullet. The canine pulled his lips back in a snarl.

"Just what are you..."

Peta turned around and froze, feeling the hairs on her nape stand up.

"What is it?" Jamie whispered, and his only answer was Peta's hand pulling him and Ahote back.

"Stay back," she replied, trying unsuccessfully to still her pounding heart.

Peta could feel the two eyes burning into her own, making her head hurt with their intensity. She tried desperately not to blink as she focused on the two different colored orbs that hovered before her, set in a dark head. One was blue, frigid; the other, amber, flaming with something she could not distinguish.

_Heterochromic eyes..._her own mind sung out the sentence as if it were a lullaby, and Peta wished that she could stuff _something _down that little voice's figurative throat, just to get it to shut up this once. A chill trickled down her spine like icy water as the voice spoke out in her mind.

_You have something that belongs to me. _

- -

_**A/n**_: **_EXTREMELY GOOD NEWS_**: I finally got my mental image of Peta together, and put her down on paper. If you'd like to take a look at her, I have a picture of her up on my profile. Two gifts from yours truly! So...voila! A new chapter for you guys. The idea for the chapter has been floating about in my head for so long, but this week was so busy I could barely sit down and finish a sentence, let alone a page of the story. I hope you enjoyed the chapter! : )


	11. Those Who Fight

_**WARNING:**_ Violence ensues below.

_**Chapter 11**_

Peta made sure that she took a step back. Her head was already hazy enough as it was; this situation was the last thing that she needed at the moment.

"I don't understand what you mean," she answered in a low voice, trying to keep herself from turning in the opposite direction and running for the hills. From what she what she had heard, this person was not someone you wanted to be around...at all.

There was no answer. They only continued to stare at each other.

Somewhere in the back of her mind was the descriptions Blue had given her that night in the animal shelter, along with the grisly images of Hige's injuries. She remembered the rawness of the wounds—there had been absolutely no mercy in their delivering. The flesh was torn and ravaged, bitten at fiercely and with madness.

Quietly, Peta pulled Ahote to her and brought him behind her back. Still not taking her eyes off of the wolf, determined not to break eye contact, she took Jamie's little hand and made sure it latched safely around Ahote's collar.

"Ahote...take Jamie home." She spoke clearly, increasing her grip around Jamie's hand so he could understand that she wanted him to hold on. Jamie's fingers wrapped around the red collar, and Peta let go, her own palm hovering only centimeters away. "Home, boy. Go."

Ahote hesitated for a moment, and then disappeared in the shifting grass behind Peta. She watched as the colored orbs darted in their direction for a second—she tensed in preparation—but in a moment, they were back on her again.

"You're that Darcia guy, aren't you?" Peta asked, hoping she didn't sound as confident as she felt. The voice that had spoken to her was his, wasn't it? There was no other explanation. And there was something strange about that golden eye...

_I see you have been informed of me._

Oh, yes. He was definitely the owner of the voice.

_No matter...I will reclaim what is rightfully mine. Paradise cannot remain hidden forever._

"You failed last time. What makes you think this try will be any different?" The stupid words had slipped out of her mouth before she could stop them. Peta clenched her fist at her side, feeling a small ache around her knuckles from when Kiba had bitten her.

_This is different,_ he grated out, crouching down. _My proof is irrefutable. _

"Is it? And just what may that proof be?" Peta asked, trying to inadvertently inch herself away from the wolf's path.

_Something those heathens could not have dreamed of._ The eyes gleamed in a sort of sick triumph, making Peta feel like her heart was in her mouth. _Something that would completely shatter their little world_.

Peta either could not feel her foot or decided not to pay attention to it, because when she stepped backwards, she only registered it as a feeling of floating. For every step she took, he took one, too, coming closer and closer—the air around the area was starting to become thick and heavy with tension.

A sneer from the wolf made her mind jerk. _They are __**alone**_.

And before she could comprehend what was happening—before she could even cry out—he lunged forward.

The world turned red.

- -

Ahote was running as fast as his legs would allow him without tripping up little Jamie, who was hustling next to him hurriedly. The child's eyes were wide and frightened, and Ahote couldn't hear him breathing very loudly. All the dog knew was that he had to get home—to warn someone, to do _something_, at least!

He barged through the half-opened door, making everybody in the room beyond the door stir or jump up. Jamie instantly relinquished his grip on Ahote's collar and ran over to his grandmother, clinging to her apron and gasping through bunches of tears in his eyes. Ahote felt a small shiver of regret run through him. Had he known the child was scared, he would have comforted him somehow.

Nana bent down and picked Jamie up, bringing him to her face and asking him what was wrong.

His only answer was a constant repetition of Peta's name. Ahote turned, scanning the room frantically for the white wolf. His gaze finally fell on the subject he sought, and he made his mind reach out, projecting his voice throughout the room. He was sure the wolves could hear him.

_You have to help her! There's another one of you—out there in the clearing—mistress is there, too—she told us to come home. Oh, I don't know what to do! I would have stayed and warded him off, but she wouldn't let me. _

The sentences and phrases came so quickly that Kiba had to struggle to pick out the words; the others in the room had small trouble with the lightning paced speech, too, but he got the general message: something bad was happening. And, apparently, it was happening _now_.

Moving swiftly to the door, Kiba pushed it aside and walked outside, where the air was cool and crisp. The afternoon was only beginning to wane; the sun dipped ever so slightly towards the west. Yes, the air was crisp, but laden with scents.

The first one was an odor he hoped to avoid, and he recognized it immediately because of its rusty quality. Blood had been spilled. Not much, but it was present nonetheless. The second scent was more like a feeling—a feeling of rank fear. And the last one was a mixture of different smells put together, a combination of stables, leaves and earth. Peta was most certainly out there, somewhere.

The grass barely made a sound against his clothing as he waded his way through the verdant sea. He trusted his sense of smell, deciding to let that guide him. There was someone behind him—he turned his head halfway to look over his shoulder, seeing three out of the four wolves following him. Toboe must have stayed in the house.

The group neared the clearing, where Blue pushed aside a minimal amount of foliage to reveal a scene that made anger flare up in him like a wildfire. There was no time to understand the exact reason _why_ he was angry, but the details were as clear as day, even though he had only a few seconds to observe them.

Peta was leaning herself against a tree, hair bedraggled and completely loose of its former ponytail. There were leaves and the odd stick tangled in the black mass; the scrunchie that used to hold it up was jutting halfway out of her jacket pocket. Kiba's eyes traveled downward to her right foot—the leg of the jean was slashed and bitten at, holes ripped through it. A wine colored stigma surrounded the tears, seeping through the material. Little rivulets of dark ruby were dripping down the damaged skin and pooling on the ground beneath her shoe.

Opposite her, a good five meters away, was someone Kiba had never wanted to see again. An ash-black wolf was hunched amongst the grass, white fangs stained with crimson. Their gazes met, and the wolf drew his lips back in a warped smile.

_Ah, it seems that we have company._

Peta blinked, breathing heavily. "What?" She looked in the direction the wolf was staring in. Her face practically fell apart with relief. She tried to take a step forward, but ended up swinging her leg towards her hand and holding it up so she wouldn't stand on it.

_Welcome, Kiba. I thought I had made off with you..._

"I don't die so easily," Kiba replied stonily, cobalt gaze hardening. He moved forward.

Peta started when Blue touched her shoulder and moved to support her. Peta nudged her head in the direction of Kiba and Darcia. Her stomach had twisted itself into a knot when she saw that they were circling each other. It looked like a twisted version of yin and yang, what with the violent contrast of the white and black against each other.

"Wait, what about them?" Peta asked, hissing when her threadbare jean leg scraped against the bite mark.

"They'll be...they'll be fine. Can you walk?" Blue averted the subject, glancing fleetingly at the bleeding limb.

"Only slightly, dammit. No bones broken or whatever. It just hurts. Heh...I always end up being mauled," the black-haired girl joked meekly, hobbling along with Blue helping her. There was a thunk behind them, and they both turned to see what was going on.

Kiba and Darcia were now tumbling in a rapid cyclone of blurry ivory and ebony, jaws flying. Peta could hear the growls and barks all the way from where she and Blue were standing. She was overcome with the longing to whack Darcia over the head with a substantial branch, keen on knocking him out. She slightly forgot the fact that she could only move at the speed of a snail with the pulling of the bite on her ankle.

Peta's stomach plunged when Kiba was thrown against a tree, his breath knocked out of him. He stood up shakily, but not fast enough to deflect the attack that was coming. That was when Tsume had sprung in, curses reverberating around the small clearing.

_You bastard!_

There was another thump as Darcia was knocked over by Tsume. They rolled together, Tsume's growls emanating rage as they bit and snapped at each other. Peta was floored. _This_ is what it used to be like in their home country? Darcia was like a freaking one-wolf army! _Insane_, the little voice in her head belted out in perfect rhythm.

"Okay, that's it," Peta grunted, making a three hundred and sixty degree turn. "We're going back."

"Are you sure your leg is okay?"

Peta laughed. "It's perfectly fine. And if it isn't, it _will_ be. Go help 'em. I'm going to do some slinking..."

"Just what are you planning?" Blue asked, narrowing her eyes in curiosity at Peta, who only grinned at her impishly despite the flecks of red on her cheeks.

"For me to know, and you to find out. See ya!"

And with that, Peta limped off, ripping her jean from the knee down by biting into it and taking advantage of the small holes her pants and tearing them until they were large enough. She tore into them even more, and that detached the material from the jean. Peta tied it around the bite, creating a makeshift bandage which temporarily soaked up all pesky liquids.

Filling her mind with new oxygen, she half-gimped, half-scampered into the trees, peering closely at the trunks, searching for her telltale mark. After a few agonizing seconds of running her hands over the coarse contours of the bark, she found the engraved 'PB' she was looking for, and poked her head out of the bushes.

She had a perfect viewpoint.

It was pandemonium in the little clearing; the wolves were engaged in one big brawl. Darcia was lashing out whoever came at him, his claws now dyed red. Kiba sported a scratch down his face; he had to blink every three seconds to get rid of the droplets of crimson falling into his eyes. Tsume was, so far, quite unharmed, except for a nasty bite on one of his ears. Hige, as much as she could see, had a cut down his belly.

Not wanting to see more bloodshed, no matter how minute the amount, Peta reached into the hollow of the tree, shuddering when her hands met cobwebs. Her fingers clasped around something familiar in shape, and she drew it out of the trunk. A black spider was crawling on her hand, apparently having been discommoded by her blind grabbing. Peta murmured a string of swear words (she never was a fan of arachnids) and placed her hand on the tree so the spider could crawl back into the tree hollow.

And then, she focused on what was in her hand: a slingshot and a very worn velvet pouch. Praying and hoping to God, she promised to feed the pigs more often and not let Nana take on the chore if the stones she had placed in the pouch years ago were still there. Much to her elation, there they were—her ammunition rested at the bottom of the pouch, ready to be used.

Peta fished out two or three small rocks and placed them in her hand. She positioned herself below one of the tallest bushes. She knelt, loaded the slingshot, and took aim.

At first, it really was hard to discern who was who—Blue and Darcia were both black wolves, so picking out one from the other whilst they were fighting was as hard as telling whether a ladybug was male or female. She could only differentiate them due to their eye color, which was not the most obvious thing at the moment.

_Really, what have I put myself into?_ Peta asked herself, still trying to take aim. When Darcia towered over Blue, baring his teeth in a pre-bite snarl, Peta decided she had had enough of squinting. Her internal patience bomb exploded, and so did her vocal chords.

"Blue, _duck!_" The wolf took her advice in a flash, dropping to the ground and rolling away from Darcia, who was nothing but shocked when a pebble came whistling out of the bushes to hit him between the eyes. He yelped in pain, his eyelids slamming shut.

This infinitesimal diversion gave Kiba the time to push Darcia away from Blue, and off they went again. Peta sighed in the 'thank Heavens!' manner when she saw that Blue was unharmed. Her hands were shaking, and she was all but beaming that after fourteen years, her aim was still on track.

Peta was sure that her heart nearly came to a stop when Kiba sunk his teeth into Darcia's shoulder. There was a slight spray of scarlet. It landed on the grass, where it rolled down in globules onto the head of the blade of grass, hanging there perilously.

At long last, the black wolf seemed to have had his fill of injuries and blood. He backed away, his front left leg hanging uselessly, probably from the vicious bite on his shoulder. Although he was wounded, he did not look the least bit perturbed.

Not one word passed between Darcia and Kiba. The black wolf only retreated swiftly, disappearing into the shadows on the outskirts of the farm. Feeling disturbed that this person had managed to find his way into the farm, Peta stepped out of the bushes, hoping he was nowhere near her now. Hopefully, he would never come again, although the prospects of that certain outcome were dim.

"Well, damn," she muttered fiercely, glaring in the direction where Darcia had vanished. "I knew he was nuts, but..."

_Did it exceed your expectations?_ Blue asked, licking at Hige's wounds. Peta's face turned into a grimace; she shook her head, trying to clear it.

"I had no expectations. I thought I was never going to meet the guy!"

_Well, you know what they say: old habits die hard. I doubted he'd give up his hunt,_ Hige said in a nonchalant manner. _Ouch! Blue, that stings!_

_Sorry. But it's a bad cut. It shouldn't get infected._

Peta just shut her eyes, feeling a little dizzy._ I should get my foot bandaged_. "Shall we head home?"

There was only a general answer of 'yes,' and for that, Peta was glad.

- -

The next morning, Kiba was up bright and early, sitting at the living room couch. All were tired, all were still sleeping, including Peta. The laceration on his face hurt limitedly, but he was more preoccupied with other thoughts. Before he even had some time to delve into them and analyze them in depth, he felt pressure on his knee as someone pushed his leg to get his attention. He looked down to see who he expected least: Jamie.

"Good morning!" the young boy said cheerfully, face stretched in a wide smile. Jamie had been extremely happy when Peta had returned home—he had bowled her over (breaking a plate in the process) and nearly asphyxiated her with a killer hug. He had been crestfallen when Peta announced she was going to bed early.

A question still remained. Why did he even want to speak to Kiba?

"Are you going to say hello back?" Jamie said, moving his head so he could look Kiba in the eyes. Jamie had inherited his mother's looks—pin straight black hair and bright brown colored eyes. It must have run in Peta's maternal side of the family, as she shared the same features, too, along with her Aunt Gloria.

"Good morning," was Kiba's soft reply. Jamie did a small dance of victory.

"I knew you could speak!" Jamie remarked, apparently triumphant. There was silence before his next question. "What's your name?"

"...Kiba."

"Ooh, weird name. Never heard it before. I'm Jamie! Jamie Deloria. My name _used_ to be Jamie Ferguson, but my mom said I shouldn't say that name anymore. Do you have a last name?"

There was another pause. "No...not that I know of."

"Huh. Strange," Jamie said, but shrugged shortly afterward. "Do you like cookies?"

This could get tiring. "I've never tried them."

Jamie's eyes widened in what could be considered horror. "You've never had...cookies? You should sometime," he whispered, now looking completely serious. "Nana's are the best. Did you know my mom's name rhymes?"

Kiba had no answer, but the boy continued, not at all put off.

"She gets annoyed when I sing it. 'Gloria Deloria!'" Jamie warbled in a sing-song voice. Kiba (but very hardly) arched an eyebrow at him as he continued to chime his mother's name. The wolf could very easily see how this could become aggravating, to say the least. Besides, why was the boy awake so early? That question died when Kiba saw the clock—it was close to seven in the morning. He guessed that by Jamie's standards, that wasn't early at all.

"Hey, hey! I have an idea!" Jamie said suddenly, quite excitedly. "Let's go wake up Peta! She gets so surprised and her face is so funny sometimes."

The idea was quickly thrown out the window. "I'd rather not."

Jamie's face collapsed into a pout for a few seconds, but then his eyes lit up with determination.

Kiba observed the obstinacy that entered Jamie's expression, feeling something inside him plummet.

This could take a while.

- -

_"Guys, don't you think she needs a new 'do?"_

_She stepped backwards, feeling the alley wall meet her back; the cold was seeping through her jacket and encasing her body in a veil of chilliness. She should not have come up here. She shouldn't have agreed to this meeting. She __**shouldn't**__ have told them about deserting. _

_"You'll regret this, Meyers," she growled, hauled forward by the grips on her upper arms. She was shoved into the ground, breath coming in gasps as the concrete and the weights above her squeezed the oxygen out of her lungs. _

_"I will?" the girl overhead leaned downwards, leering at her with a mock expression of thoughtfulness. The harsh street lights blocked out her features, leaving only a black void where her face was supposed to be. "Nah, don't think I will." The girl lifted her head to the people holding Peta down. "Continue."_

_"What are you doing?" Peta managed to semi-yell furiously when she heard the hissing sound of scissor blades converging and scraping each other. "Let me go, you bastards!" Her head was roughly yanked backwards by the hair; her scalp erupted into pain when the wrenching did not subside. _

_Without warning, the pull stopped and Peta's head sprung back downwards. Something was missing. They had done something to her! Peta shook her head, only finding that her hair was covering her eyes. She shook her head again. She did not feel her hair brushing against her shoulders. Peta could see a triangle of black locks in front of her, but she felt no weight from it behind her. _

_Daisy laughed hollowly, rolling onto the balls of her heels and staring into Peta's eyes. "I think it suits you just fine. How about a makeover, too? I think those cheeks of yours need some blush."_

_Peta was jerked upwards, landing on her feet, only to be dragged backwards again. She struggled, her muscles hopelessly lax. She knew what was coming, and there was no way to stop it. The meager rays of light that the street lamps provided disappeared as she was drawn further back into the alley. _

_She coughed when a balled fist smashed into her stomach._

- -

Just how had he been dragged into this? Kiba watched reluctantly as Jamie placed his small hand on the knob of Peta's bedroom door and pushed it so that the door swung inwards. The room wasn't dark at all—there was a fair bit of light coming through the window. That light was only tinily obscured by a drawn blind, but the blind itself was pulled just halfway down.

Jamie entered the room fearlessly, jumping over a pair of discarded shoes and then proceeding to vault onto the bed, where Peta was supposedly sleeping. Without knowing it, Kiba had entered the room by only one step, although the distance wasn't anything very special. Jamie seemed to be absorbed in the task of waking up Peta in the scariest way possible.

The target of Jamie's strategies was sleeping peacefully—he was almost sorry for letting Jamie come upstairs. Quite oddly, Kiba noted, Peta slept on her back. She was dressed in a tank top (wasn't she cold?) and what seemed to be black sweatpants; her bandaged ankle was visible beneath the folds of the blanket and sheets.

Jamie leaned forward with a snicker, his hand outstretched to shock her into wakefulness. Kiba saw Peta's face draw into a frown a second before Jamie poked her in the cheek.

The effect it had on Peta was electrifying. She shot upwards, back straight—and then, Jamie's and Peta's foreheads connected in such a loud crack that even Kiba winced from where he was standing, which was just one pace into the room. Peta flopped back onto her bead, groaning and rubbing her forehead.

"Jamie..." her voice held a warning tone, and the boy in question gave a short cry of surprise at her sudden awareness. "When I get my hands on you...what have I told you about coming into my room?!" And then, her eyes were open again. She noticed Kiba in the doorway. "What are you doing up here?"

"I don't know myself, actually..."

"I brought him!" Jamie said, grabbing Peta's shoulders and bringing her up with strength disproportionate to his size. "You didn't make a funny face this time, though." He looked around Peta's bed, and then grabbed a black book from the bed sheets. "Aunt Hana's cookbook!"

"You are going to pay for my forehead," Peta said in a low voice, succeeding in making Jamie lower the book swiftly and jump off the bed to escape her grabbing hands. "Come back here, brat!"

"Mom said that if you call me names you'll get in trouble!"

"Aunt Gloria isn't here now, is she? I'll get you for that! I'm going to have a bruise the size of Rhode Island on my head!"

"Aah! No, don't kill me! Help, help!"

_I must be going crazy, _Kiba thought, witnessing the wild pursuit that ensued between Peta and Jamie. Yes, he must not be feeling well.

Disregarding that, he felt uncannily content to watch this peculiar girl chase her wayward cousin around the room.

- -

_**A/n:**_ Another chapter done! I feel proud of myself. I'm on vacation, and feel quite ashamed—I put off the end of this chapter twice because I was busy playing Assassin's Creed. XO I loved writing the end of the chapter, though. Jamie's such a dear, even though he breaks anything he touches. XD I want to thank you for your reviews. Isn't so much better that I don't have the shout-outs hanging to the bottom of the page? I reply to reviews individually now. : ) Does anybody want to guess what Darcia meant in saying they were alone? ;] Until next time, good readers! :D


	12. Catching the Rebound

_**Chapter 12**_

Peta looked morose today, Kiba noticed. She had been haunting the small corners of the hallways and floating through the house like some sort of a creepy ghost, not getting extremely angry or happy, which was quite odd for her. It couldn't be because Jamie was leaving; the little boy was departing in week—there was still time to spend with him. It had been four days since Jamie's arrival, and the mood only seemed to worsen with the passing of time.

What was bothering her, then?

He couldn't figure out what, but whatever the reason was, it was making the usually boisterous Peta quite fidgety and nervous. Nana seemed to be just a tiny bit grimmer now, too (not that she wasn't always). It seemed like a black blanket of silence had fallen over the house. It didn't affect Jamie, obviously (nothing affected _him,_ really), but it certainly made Toboe quieter.

Out of all the wolves, Toboe was the one who spent the most time with Peta. Whether it was taking him to the stables or show him the sheep pen—which the sheep did not appreciate very much—he seemed to be having fun, so Kiba let him have his way. It wasn't like Peta was some sort of mercenary, anyway.

Kiba was sitting on a chair outside, on the porch, enjoying the fading warm weather. Summer was going to be over soon, and autumn would be rolling in with shades of gold and red. Peta had told him that it didn't really effect the evergreen parts of the mountain, but down in the town, fall was always beautiful.

He looked forward to it.

Strange as it may have seemed, he was growing attached to this place. It was peaceful and open, and the scents out here were fresh and crisp, not at all like the polluted innards of Freeze City. For all of this, Kiba still could not push away the empty feeling of hollowness slowly growing inside his heart. He was sure his companions were experiencing it, too. Cheza's absence was acutely felt within the small pack, and it was not something that everyday, daily life could easily replace.

The twilight was darkening into dusk, which soon melted into night—Kiba still did not feel like going inside. He wanted to think a bit more, speculate a bit more, but his brain did not seem to want to comply with his wishes. His head lolled backwards, just a little bit, but before he fell completely asleep, Kiba forced himself to walk inside and seat himself on the couch.

Tomorrow...tomorrow always came, no matter what he did.

He had learned not to fight it by now.

- -

In the wee hours of the morning, Peta lay awake in her bed, either toying with the bedsheets or listening to music. Other times, she just stared up at the ceiling, watching her memories project themselves onto the blank space above her. If she went back to sleep, more lifelike images awaited her. If she stayed awake, she inevitably grew drowsy. It was a failing battle, no matter what she did.

Peta lifted a hand and brought it to her head, slowly rubbing her forehead—whether it was to stop her headache or ward off the sleepiness, she did not know. Perhaps for both. Her thoughts screeched to a stop when her door swung open.

Peta sat up in her bed, careful not to strain her bitten ankle too much. She could hear sniffling coming from the doorway. Her heart gave a great leap of confusion when she recognized who was standing at the entrance of her room.

"Jamie?"

Her seven year old cousin shuffled into the room—he was barefoot and clad in blue pajamas with a cloud print on them. His left hand was hooked around his beloved stuffed bunny, Benjamin, and his right fist was assigned to wiping away tears from his eyes.

"Jamie, what's wrong?"

He looked up at her with tearful eyes, and sniffed loudly again, breaking into tiny sobs. "I had a nightmare."

Peta opened up her arms, and he climbed into the bed, halfheartedly placing himself in her embrace. "It was a dream."

"M-mom. She—she left," Jamie whimpered, curling himself into a ball. Benjamin was squished in his arms. "Just...just like dad." He was crying earnestly by the last word. Peta wrapped her arms around him and drew him closer.

"Oh, honey...your mom's not going to leave you. She loves you very, very much."

"That's what dad said!" Jamie objected, betrayal tainting his young voice. "He told me he loved me. And then he left!"

"Go on, cry it out," Peta practically ordered him. She never was quite good at comforting people. She tried, though. Jamie took her advice to heart, and pressed his black-haired head against her shoulder, sobbing his little heart out. She rubbed his back slowly, hoping to help him through the hiccups he was getting.

"I don't want mom to leave," he said under his breath, still trying to even out his inhalations because of his crying. "I don't want...I don't want her to leave..."

"She won't," Peta told him firmly, pulling him upright against her. "Take my word for it."

"It was so real..."

"Nightmares can be very real. But the best part is...?"

"That they're a dream," Jamie said sullenly, answering the question his mom always asked him. "It won't come true?"

"Nope," Peta said, shaking her head. "It was a _dream_."

"Sorry," Jamie mumbled, barely audible.

"There you go, apologizing again," Peta sighed and rolled her eyes. "Do you know what time it is?"

"No..."

"It's four in the morning."

There was a small pause, broken only by the occasional snuffle.

"Can I sleep here with you?"

Peta looked at Jamie's face. Trails from the tears (which had stopped flowing, thankfully), were obvious on his face; she reached out and wiped them away, handing Jamie a tissue. He diligently blew his nose, like he had been taught.

"Sure," she responded simply, plumping up a pillow. "But if you kick, I'm going to throw you out."

Jamie smiled widely, positioning himself next to Peta, using her upper arm as a cushion. He soon started to fall asleep, eyelids flickering. He snuggled a little closer, trying to preserve heat. He spoke only a short sentence before wholly sleeping.

"You're the best."

Peta patted his head softly, feeling his even breathing against her. Jamie was so sturdy and durable, sort of like one of those indestructible rubber balls. The harder you bounce it, the higher it goes. The more you swing it, the farther it lands. Things set Jamie back, but he always rebounded to his original place, sometimes in an even better condition than before.

"You're the best, too."

- -

The next morning, the sky was clear and devoid of clouds. A vast expanse of sapphire stretched above the entire world, looking ready to devour the ground beneath it. Blue stretched her hands over her head, taking in a deep breath of the invigorating atmosphere.

"Now I understand what you meant when you said that you feel the sky can fall on your head," Blue laughed, helping Peta carry hay bales to the kubota. "It seems huge."

"It _is_ huge," Peta responded, cracking an imitation of a smile. They heaved together and placed the hay bale onto the kubota. "C'mon, jump in," she beckoned, taking the driver's seat. Blue followed a bit reluctantly, but she got on anyway.

When the kubota started, Blue started at its noisiness.

"It's a bit loud," Peta apologized meekly. "But it moves so slowly you can jump off."

"I'm alright," Blue said, holding the handle overhead so she didn't fall out into the trail. "Are you alright?"

"Just fine," Peta replied automatically.

"You sure?"

"Positive. Why the questions?"

"Because you seem a bit down lately," Blue remarked, shrugging. "I thought there might be something that was bothering you."

Peta sighed as the kubota came to a stop. She hopped out, and went around back so she could pull the hay bale out again. "I've got a...meeting, tomorrow. Nothing to worry about."

"A meeting?" Blue raised an eyebrow at that. They carried the hay bale into the barn, depositing in the storage built for feed. "Is it dangerous?"

Peta laughed, but not in very good humor. "Goodness, no. It's not dangerous at all," she assured Blue, wiping her jeans off and dusting away strands of hay. She slid the door to storage shut.

"Then what is it?" Blue asked. They were now nearing Den's paddock—as usual, the Clydesdale was grazing tranquilly by the fence, not paying heed to anything around him. That is, until Peta began rattling the bucket of oats. His ears swerved towards Peta immediately.

"It's not anything special," Peta insisted, grabbing the halter from the fence.

"You seem apprehensive."

"I am," Peta said honestly, swiftly fastening the halter on Den as soon as he went for the oats. "Very much so. But I've been doing it for the past ten years, so I think I'll survive."

"It's impossible to get an answer out of you," Blue relented, eying Den warily. Peta caught her gaze and then looked back to Den, and back at Blue again.

"Go on, you can stroke him," Peta said, rolling her shoulders in the direction of the horse. "He's on a halter...it doesn't really help, because of his size, but I still got a hold on him."

"That just comforts me a whole lot," Blue muttered, stretching her hand forward. It landed on Den's muzzle—the horse tensed at her touch, but let it go on without any trouble. Her hand ran down his blaze, and she soon found out that petting a horse was something quite enjoyable indeed.

"See? He's a big stuffed animal," Peta said, smacking Den affectionately on the neck. She scratched just behind his ears, making him relax. "I'm gonna take him out for a ride, so I'll be back in an hour or so. If I'm not...well, get the shotgun," she joked, leading Den out of the paddock.

"Shotgun?" Blue asked, not relishing the memories that the word brought back.

"Yeah. But seriously, if you need one, just ask Nana," Peta said, walking away slowly, towing Den with her. "She should have dad's shotgun stashed away somewhere. See you later!"

"Bye..." Blue returned the gesture, waving at Peta slightly. That girl was dodging the questions! Blue knew it as well as she knew that Hige had a large appetite. She was avoiding something.

Yes she was, but what?

- -

Kiba had watched yet another sunset disintegrate into night, and again he had felt the tug of slumber's strings. Things had been rather quiet today—Peta had been out of the house most of the time with Blue, working in the stables, bringing in fresh eggs, that kind of thing. He hadn't really grasped _why_ Blue would be willing to help out with such chores—after all, it wasn't like the animals couldn't tell when wolves passed by their pens. Nevertheless, Blue felt accomplished after talking to and establishing a small bond with Den.

The house was already silent, but he could hear little indications that his friends were sleeping. Hige and Blue would share the guest room downstairs with Toboe; there was ample furniture inside, including a bed and a large sofa. Kiba himself took the couch in the living room. Tsume was a little stubborn. In fact, he and Peta had had a minuscule (alright, maybe just a wee bit larger) dispute over hospitality.

In the end, Peta had forced Tsume take the free room that was upstairs. Kiba knew that Tsume was comfortable—the gray wolf just didn't want to admit it.

Curse this cozy couch! It was putting him to sleep again. It didn't help that everything in the house was spotless because of Nana's everlasting vigil over cleanliness. The beds' sheets always smelled minty and the couches were always well-kept.

One slip of the thought process, and off Kiba went into the land of slumber.

- -

Peta turned on her side, wincing when she pressured her ankle. The bandages protected it from chaffing, but the bite itself still hurt; she knew it would continue to do so for quite a while. The calendar hung in the corner of her room, almost mocking her with its large numbers and the red circle around tomorrow's date.

_I don't want to go_, she thought, messing up her hair. She really didn't want to attend the anniversary, but to _not_ do so would be a disrespect to her family (small as it was) and her mother's memory. And that, she did not want.

On the horribly negative side, she'd have to see her dad again. They weren't at odds or anything along the lines of that...things had simply become...extremely awkward after her mother's death. It was like something stretched between them, but none could pass over it. From then on, Jeff had immersed himself in work, and Peta had barely seen him.

When things had started getting too much to handle in their old farm in Nebraska, Nana had picked up things ('picked up' meaning taking _all_ the animals with them) and brought the then-ten-year-old Peta to this wonderful place in Colorado, where her mother had reportedly grown up.

This was a home full of memories and good things, even if most of them weren't made by Peta. When she had been small, she had liked to think about her mother's spirit living inside the house. The thought seemed a little silly now, but she sometimes called on it when she was feeling alone and detached in the world of her bad dreams.

_How very childish..._

_S_he fell into a light, disturbed sleep.

- -

_There it was. That inscrutable brilliance. It was all around him again. It rose from the flowers and the green grass and pressed down from the azure sky. This place had brought him a nightmare before, and he only wanted to wake up now. He shook his head, trying to stop the honeyed scent from playing with his mind. This was only a dream, and he had to remember that. _

_"Kiba."_

_Ah, but who could deny the unquestionably realistic sound of her voice? _

_"Please, open your eyes."_

_He did as he was told, and his breath was taken away. There she was, kneeling right in front of him, looking as alive as she had the day before they had ventured into Paradise. Her garnets of eyes watched him carefully, and then he felt a hand smoothing back the fur on his head. _

_"Cheza..."_

_"This one will be waiting, Kiba," she said quietly, running her fingers through the fur. A small breeze blew back her pastel pink hair, making it whip around her face like a cerise halo. "You must find me."_

_"Where are you?" he asked, still not wanting to go. "I don't know where to begin. Tell me where."_

_"You will find your way," she said, sounding assured. "This one knows you will." She hugged him briefly, and then pulled away, smiling slightly. "I have faith in your will, Kiba. You must look past my words."_

_"But what do you mean?" Kiba asked again, feeling hopelessly lost. He knew that as soon as he would wake, this would all vanish. "What more is there to your words? How can I know where to look?"_

_"This world has done many things to me," Cheza sighed, her tone wistful. "This one has changed very much. I will not be the same once I leave. This one's eyes are blinded when they open."_

_There was silence as they took liberty in being in each other's company again. There was a sort of serenity hanging in the air, swathing the dream-world in layers upon layers of safety. Cheza gave him one last stroke before taking away her hands, face regretful. _

_"Help me see, Kiba."_

- -

Peta's slippered feet did not make any sound as she descended the stairs. She had had just about as much tossing and turning as she could take. Her mind now craved warm milk and honey. Maybe she was developing insomnia. Who knew? Anything was possible after these days. After all, there were things like talking wolves, shape-shifting, maniacally twisted men with the eyes of wolves set on taking over Paradise flying about—it sounded apocalyptic once you got to the last part.

Peta softly made her way downstairs, walking through the living room to get to the kitchen. She stopped when she noticed that Kiba was awake. He was sitting upright on the couch, arms folded over his chest, icily blue eyes practically aflame. Tying her robe tighter so it wouldn't come loose, Peta walked over to him and sat carefully at the edge of the couch.

"Why're you awake?" she asked faintly, making him turn to her with an expression of shock. _He didn't see me coming, eh? __**I**__ surprised __**him**__ this time! _

"You're awake."

"You get a prize just for that one," Peta said, rubbing her hands together. It was cold down here. "Stupid reason is keeping me up. Would you like some milk and honey?"

"Not really."

"Suit yourself." Peta moved to get up, but an unexpected question stopped her.

"Do you believe I can bring Cheza back?"

Peta plopped herself down again, completely not ready for such an inquiry. She searched his face for any sign of a strained expression. He wasn't strained—just distant, she realized. To get his attention, she touched his knee. "I believe you can do whatever you want and need to do."

Peta retracted her hand, feeling a bit stupid. What a mushy-gushy answer! Couldn't she had done any better? This time, she got up for real, going towards the kitchen. That temporary insomnia had gotten to her head more than she had thought!

- -

"Pe-e-ta! Wakey, _wakey_!" came a voice from above Peta's head. She turned onto her back in her bed, and saw the light coming from her window blocked by a black shape that was currently leaning over her.

"Gah!" Peta's eyes flared open, recognizing the silhouette. "Jamie, what are you doing in my room?"

"I wanted to wake you up," Jamie said, hiding behind a fold in the bed sheets. "It's twelve forty..Nana says you have to be ready by one, whatever that means."

Twelve?! Had she really slept that late? Peta put a hand over her head, groaning from the sudden wake-up call. That milk had really done her in. She had gotten her sleep, for once. Since Peta had slept till twelve, that meant that she didn't have all morning to agonize about the anniversary, which was generally a good thing.

"Nana said you're going to wear a dress today."

"Yes, I have to," Peta groaned again, putting her face into her pillow. "Complete with the torture contraptions called high heels. I'm going to die today."

"I've only seen you once in a dress," Jamie noted, creeping closer. "Don't you like them?"

"It's not that I don't like them. I just don't feel comfortable in them," Peta retorted.

"Nana's saved breakfast for you."

"God bless that woman."

There was rustling as Peta got up, hair hanging in a gnarled mess around her shoulders.

"You look like the boogie-man." Jamie leaned back and squinted at her from a distance. "Yeah, you sure do."

"No comments from the peanut gallery, thank you. Now, be off with you. I've gotta...dress," she finished weakly, shooting a murderous glare in the direction of her wardrobe.

"See you downstairs!" Jamie called, running out the door.

Peta watched him. Yes, just like a rubber ball. Then, she looked back at her wardrobe. She pulled up her sleeves.

It was time to test her own capabilities to bounce back.

- -

_**A/n:**_ One more chapter finished! Wasn't all that pleased with this one, but I liked a few scenes.

**iwalkinthelight – **To answer your question – yes, I will reply to anonymous reviewers after the chapter ends. It's not quite fair to leave them hanging. XD I did not put replies into the last chapter because it was late at night and I sort of forgot. -.- But there will be anonymous replies after my author's notes from now on. You did not sound whiny or selfish. Your questions were perfectly reasonable.

Now, for the rest of your review: _thank you_! Hopefully this chapter gave you a little more understanding of what he meant. I'm always happy to see you and the rest of the readers review. I'm glad my writing can elicit a response from you. : )


	13. The Thing in Black

_**Chapter 13**_

Kiba had the feeling that something was going on that morning; that there was something important that he should know, but didn't. Then again, he was still pretty confused about the dream he had experienced in the night. What could she have possibly meant? It didn't make much sense...but then again, much of the things he dealt with did not make much sense.

His chain of thoughts was pulled apart (as it usually was around this house), when Jamie came thundering down the stairs, hands over his head as if he were trying to escape something.

"Ah! No, no! Don't throw it, please!"

Jamie had come downstairs for a very short moment before rushing upstairs again, where Kiba assumed he had a sort of punishment inflicted upon him from Peta. There was a _thunk_! as a dark colored purse knocked Jamie over the head—it didn't seem to have a lot of things in it, but it was sure that the impact hurt. The purse had sailed in from the top of the stairs, which were out of sight.

"I _told _you to stay out of my room, didn't I?"

Peta did not sound too happy, and that was never a good sign for Jamie.

Peta stumbled down the stairs, although not it her normal fashion. She was wearing...what _was_ she wearing? Peta struggled to keep her balance in a pair of black pumps as she took small steps down the stairs until she was finally standing on the ground floor. Her face was twisted into a frown and her hair was drawn back in a very tight looking, very plain chignon. She was clad in a comfortably black woolen dress that came to an even stop just before her knees.

"Did the purse really hurt you?" she asked, bending over to pick up the offending accessory.

"No...but it was still scary!"

"That'll teach you to sneak into my room."

It went on like this for a few minutes before Peta hobbled into the kitchen to get her breakfast-slash-lunch, leaving Kiba to wonder what in the world she was doing.

It was only a few moments later that she emerged from the kitchen again, looking like something was lodged uncomfortably in her throat. He imagined that she had eaten too quickly for her own good. She shook out her foot—which was no longer bandaged—and straightened her jacket.

"Well, I'm off," she announced gloomily, any traces of a good mood disappearing in a puff of displeasure.

"That's a lot of black," Hige noted, looking at her. "You going to a funeral?"

Peta shouldered her purse and gave a wistful smile. "Sort of."

The half-answer did not spark any more questions, but she gave a small wave as she closed the door behind her.

"Where d'you think she's going?" Blue asked, watching Peta drive the car out of the path and out of line of vision.

No one heard Nana (as usual) setting down the tray behind them, so they were surprised when she spoke. "She is attending a meeting for the annual anniversary of my daughter's death."

Eyebrows rose at that one.

"I think she looks too much like a girl," Jamie pouted, staring at the door with a sulk. "Stupid dress."

"Something tells me she didn't like it any more than you did," Toboe told him, remembering Peta's semi-snarl and scowls when her jacket got caught on one of the counter's protrusions.

"When will she be back, Nana?" Jamie asked, his sulk increasing. He did not like being left behind, even though he knew that where Peta was going was unpleasant.

"Somewhere around four," was Nana's short answer.

- -

"I'm going to kill myself!" Peta grumbled, glaring murderously at the pumps that were so hard to drive in. She really was going to unintentionally ram into some sort of a pole if she wasn't careful. Taking advantage of the red light, Peta flung off her pumps so she could step on the pedals with more ease. Sure, her feet were getting cold, but it's better to have cold feet rather than ensure that she was going to have a funeral for herself.

Peta turned the wheel, sighing. She wanted to get this over and done with as quick as possible. Her father wasn't a mean person. No, no, quite the contrary. Jeff was a gentleman in most aspects, but things had gotten rather uncomfortable after her mother's death. They didn't fight—they actually didn't _speak_ much at all.

Jeff's job had him traveling here and there, globe-trotting every other month or so. It was always the same thing. "Seal a contract," or, "Convince a client," and "Finish business." It was a wonder Peta got to see him at all. Money had been one of the most scarce things to find after Hana passed away. They had been forced to sell the house in Nebraska and move to Colorado.

Yes, Peta had gotten much more attached to the house in Glenwood Springs, and it was where her mother spent childhood, but the farm on Nebraska had a very special place in her heart, too. The most prominent thing that she remembered about Nebraska was its flatness.

There were humongous stretches of land all at once, running into the horizon as far as the eye could see. The next most profound thing in her memory was the tornadoes. One had even ripped the roof off of the outhouse next to the farm and torn the barn in half. None of the horses had died, but Peta had never seen a few of the animals around the farm again.

A rude blaring jerked her into reality again, and Peta became aware of the extremely displeased driver behind her. She was moving along the road at a moderate speed, not passing or falling below the speed limit. The driver opened his window and stuck his head out, shouting in what sounded like a slurred voice.

"Get a move on, bee-yotch!"

Peta hoped that her so called laser gaze was reflecting off her rear view mirror, somehow magically burning through the rear window and striking the driver in the face.

She continued down the road, not taking heed of his fast driving and the swerves he was doing as he weaved in amongst the cars in hopes to get in front. He zoomed away, driving out of view as he accelerated and became hidden over the bend of the road.

You can imagine the level of smugness Peta felt when she drove past and his car had been stopped by the police.

- -

"I'm b-o-ored," Jamie crowed, swinging his legs to and fro as he stared out the window. He had done everything from sliding down the banister (it had earned him a sharp look from Nana, so that had failed) all the way to poking Ahote's ears as they twitched in his sleep (which had also failed because Ahote was now napping _under _the couch).

"Sit still," Nana told him from where she was standing over the sink.

"But Peta's not here..." Jamie said, huffing in a displeased manner and puffing up his cheeks.

"She will be back soon enough."

- -

Peta stood in the middle of the cemetery like a statue herself, nervousness having numbed every one of her senses and paralyzed her common sense. What should she say to him? What should she do? Was it alright to talk casually, or would he take offense? Peta was currently waiting for her father in their usual spot: right in front of her mother's tombstone.

"What should I do, Mama?" she whispered, patting the stone with one hand, not minding when it chilled her palm. "I don't know what to say..."

"Peta?"

The voice came from out of nowhere, and Peta stumbled backwards, tripping. She was hoisted up by a pair of strong arms. Stupidly, she realized that her father had arrived without her even taking notice. _Typical wrongheadedness_, she berated herself, pulling away from Jeff's grip.

They stood awkwardly across from each other. Peta looked at her father. He had changed since she had last seen him. His brown hair was riddled with silver streaks and there were traces of plum colored bags under his eyes. Had he been getting enough sleep? His hazel eyes were dull and contained no shine.

"You've grown," he said quietly, tucking a stray strand of black hair behind Peta's ear. "You look very much like your mother."

"Do I?" Peta asked, turning to face the tombstone. "How've things been for you?"

Jeff retracted his hand, letting it hang by his side. "Well...the firm's had me traveling a lot."

Peta nodded, not willing to answer.

"How's Nana?"

"She's doing well. Jamie's over at the house," Peta murmured, thinking that it wouldn't exactly please Jeff if she mentioned the new inhabitants.

"Gloria's doing fine, I trust..."

"Yes. Awesomely well. She's currently trying to stop him from getting visitation rights."

Jeff sighed, looking at tombstone again. "If only she'd let me help."

Peta stepped away from him, hugging her arms, as if she were cold. "You know that she wouldn't _accept_ your help."

There was silence between them. They both ran their gazes over the all too familiar heading carved into the tombstone.

_Hana Bryant._

_Mother, wife, sister, aunt. She will be missed._

_1951-1999_

Her mother's death hadn't been a dramatic scene, where Peta had flung herself crying at the hospital bed, screaming over her mother's corpse. No, in fact, it was almost cruelly peaceful. She hadn't understood anything, neither had she been aware that her mother was slowly deteriorating. When Hana had packed up her things to go to the hospital, little Peta had assumed it was for a short time.

She was right, in a way.

One morning, when Peta woke up, her mother was just...gone. There was no mourning, no tears. Her presence had simply vanished into thin air. Peta's parents' room was devoid of the scent of soft perfume and powder. The bed was not slept in. Peta couldn't smell the powder on herself from whenever her mother would come and kiss her in the morning before going out to do errands.

There was no more rustling from the bathroom, no more clink of bracelets on marble when Peta's mother took off her few, prized pieces of family jewelry and polished them in the sink. The steady sound of Hana walking around on slippered feet was missing too, and at first, she did not believe that she would never hear it again.

She listened and listened, but the sounds never came. Day after day, she waited for her mother to call her down to breakfast or scold her climbing up trees and skinning her knees to the bone. Sometimes, she'd stay up late into the night, waiting for other things: the familiar _sh-sh_ of the slippers along the hall and her mother tucking her into bed.

Peta remembered dozing beside her still-lit lamp, sleepiness making her think she saw Hana's shadow in the hallway.

They weren't anything special, these things that her mother did, but their presence was sorely missed. Peta had known kids who had mothers who pampered them and spoiled them, did everything they could to make their children happy. She had found herself longing for her mother's occasional nos and the tiny things that she used to do. It was as if Hana was a drawing that had just been erased.

"Shall we take some lunch together?"

Peta blinked at her father, banishing all previous thoughts from her mind. "Sure."

Jeff closed his eyes for a brief moment, crossed himself, and laid a white lily on Hana's grave. He stared at the tombstone pensively before leading the way to the car, back facing Peta.

Peta took the opportunity to brush away one unshed tear.

- -

Blue's eyes trailed Jamie as he bounced about the room, endeavoring to catch Ahote but still landing in the category of 'failing.' Nana was seated in her rocking chair. It seemed that her crochet had done much progress. Three-fourths of the sweater was done. The flower pattern along the collar had become evident. She stared at the pattern, speaking as she continued with the crochet.

"She loved flowers..."

Blue looked upwards, the words having escaped her. "Sorry?"

"My daughter." Nana undid a knot in her crochet. "She loved flowers." Nana set down the crochet, fingering the pattern and looking it over for any flaws. "She was such a lovely girl, so happy and peaceful. Anyone would feel calm when being around her."

"She sounds like a wonderful person," Blue said. "Cheza was like that, too. She was always composed, and so caring. Cheza could get a bit clumsy at times, but it...it was really great. Kiba would kill me if he heard me speaking in the past tense."

Nana gave a small, crooked smile. "A strong mind, the fanged one. I sometimes wish I had his conviction."

"We all do," Blue admitted.

For a few moments, all that could be heard was the thumping of Jamie's small feet on the floor and the scrabbling of Ahote's claws on the parquet as he evaded Jamie's efforts to crush him in a mini-version of the bear hug.

"You and your friends have carried great burdens and come so far," Nana said unexpectedly, remembering Toboe's narrative and the story of the pack that had come so far. "...Only to end up here."

"It's better than where we were before," Blue said, Freeze City coming to mind immediately. The crack of the shotgun and the feel of a collar around her neck were strong memories that had not faded away yet.

"Our world is just as bad as the place you came from."

- -

Peta hardly knew how had she had managed to get the food down her throat and into her stomach without heaving it up or choking on it. It was her father she was eating lunch with, not a mafia don! But, of course, feelings and useless fears took hold every time and she ended up being nauseated anyway. Besides, this was the _second_ time she was having lunch! The only reason she had come was to humor her father. It was difficult enough eating when being full - she didn't need to be worried on top of that!

"Have you looked into getting a job?"

Peta looked up from her plate of steak and potatoes. "...No."

"Are you planning to go to college?"

"...Maybe." Why was he asking her these things? "Why do you want to know?"

"I've been thinking lately," Jeff said, setting down his fork and observing his daughter. "What if I told you that you had a chance to live in London for a couple of years?"

Peta had trouble swallowing the bite of meat she had sent down her esophagus. "W-what?!"

"I have connections in London—you could get into a really good college. You have both the papers and the grades to, so why not?"

Peta put down her fork and knife, sitting back so she could process the information. She and her father hadn't had a proper conversation in months, and now he was offering to go to college in London? The world really _had_ gone crazy.

"There are perfectly good colleges in the US," she said uncertainly, crumpling a napkin underneath the tablecloth with more force needed to crumple a napkin.

"I know, but I want you to travel, get out of the States, for once."

"Why the fatherly advice?" Peta asked, feeling the very queer urge to laugh descending upon her. "You haven't spoken more than a sentence to me since September, so why are talking about this now?"

"I know I've neglected my duties as a father," Jeff said, lacing his fingers together and pressing his mouth to the top of his knuckles. "I just want what's best for you, that's all."

"We might as well be starring in a film called 'Pericolosamente Drammatico!'" Peta exclaimed, her hands tightening into fists. "You want what's best for me? That's fine! But why didn't you do anything earlier? You were _fine_ before mom died! What happened to you?"

Well, there, it was out. Out into the open and as ugly as a boil.

Jeff had gone slightly peaked, eyes wide. "...I know."

Peta growled angrily. "I know that you know! That's what's getting at me!" Peta lowered her head into her hands, continuing to let loose little sounds of exasperation. "I don't understand, okay? I'm not good at 'people-stuff.' I never was, and I'm extremely obtuse in such matters! Please, make your intentions clear!"

Peta felt like she had been shocked with a stun baton when her father took her hands in his and grasped them tightly, making her grip loosen completely.

"I've been really stupid, haven't I?"

"Yes, you have." There was a momentary pause. "And no, I'm not going to London."

- -

Peta had severely miscalculated her time with her father. He had had to take off earlier ("Duty calls!"), so Peta had started out much earlier, too. She was glad to be out of the cemetery, but not so glad that she was inside the clunky Ford pickup truck again. Peta glanced at the clock—it was only two o'clock, and she had absolutely nowhere to...but home.

"Ah, well," she sighed, turning the ignition on.

The car sputtered into life, and they were soon puttering down the road, leaving behind the restaurant Jeff had taken her to for lunch. She had already mentally decided to have ice cream when she was going to go home—Jamie would certainly be happy about her choice.

As Peta went around the bend, the car gave a particularly loud cough, but she paid no attention. Damn engine was always acting up, anyway. She was extremely lucky that she had come to the top of the small hill when the engine itself completely gave out.

The failure of the car generated a great deal of swearing and repetition of: "Stupid thing!" from Peta, who had no choice but to get out and look at the car.

Just when she thought she could escape playing engineer in her formal clothing, Peta realized that she had not taken her cell phone with her. There was no way to contact home or call some sort of car service to pick up his hunk of junk for her.

In the end, she really did have to play engineer in these scratchy clothes.

When that did not produce any results, she had to get down on her hands and knees and observe the wheels to see if they had any problems. She was eternally grateful that the road she came back on was almost always deserted, except for when the school nearby finished and the students came out to have their parents pick them up.

In turn, when looking at the wheels did not enlighten her about the car's condition, she got on her back and pushed herself underneath the car so she tinker with the engine in hopes that she could revive the car into some sort of a movable state so the road home wasn't simply a dream.

Unfortunately for Peta, who was quite angry at the moment, her temper made a sharp increase when she saw that the seals around the oil tank beneath the car were loose. That couldn't have been the problem—the leak could be fixed, but it was one of the things that made her scramble as fast as she could away from the underside of the car after she felt something drip onto her nape.

Peta wrung out her hair, and horrified, saw that there was a black substance on her hands.

"Oh, for the love of Pete!" she cried, shaking her hands in an effort to get the oil away from her skin. Her neck was splattered with the stuff, and now she smelled as well as looked like something that had just emerged from the black lagoon.

"_Now_ what?" Peta asked the air, wiping her hands on her black skirt (well, it wouldn't show), so that her hands could become less slippery. Peta scanned the horizon. There was only one building that was in walking distance, and that was the school. She supposed that she had to go to the school for help. They were still having class, seeing as it was only two in the afternoon. Besides, the town was further away than she could manage, especially in these lethal shoes.

Thankfully, a brainstorm arrived to her at that moment. She retrieved her spare pair of working boots from the back of the car and slipped them on, discarding the pumps without a second thought to the trunk.

Peta turned and looked at the school. It wasn't too far off, but it wasn't all that near, either. She climbed into the pickup again and plucked the keys from the ignition. That way, no one would be able to start the car to take it away. Actually, no one would be able to start the thing unless they either had a tow truck to pull it away or were an engineer themselves. Anyway, she wasn't going to make their job all that easier by leaving the keys in. If someone wanted to steal it after _all_ of that, they were welcome to take it! It'd only be a load off Peta's back.

Still thinking criminal thoughts about the traitorous pickup, Peta took off her jacket, tied it around her waist, and began tramping her way towards the school.

She thought about her current appearance: a young woman with a disheveled chignon, wearing black rubber boots speckled with mud with a woolen dress, her face smudged with engine oil and her jacket hinged from her waist in a most unladylike manner.

Definitely black lagoon material.

- -

_**A/n:**_ Like all the weird things in the story before, yes, this does have a purpose. Sorry for the late update. DX Lack of inspiration and a busy schedule didn't allow me to sit down and get some phrases down. Blame the moroseness of this chapter on the fact that I listened to the piano versions of "Sadness and Sorrow" and "To Zanarkand."

**_THANK YOU FOR YOUR REVIEWS!_** I have a treat for you, too. The 100th reviewer will get an appearance in the next chapter in a role that I have chosen. Again, thank you for your reviews! They're all lovely and encouraging and help me become a better writer through your critique. :) My day is made when a new chapter to a story is added, so, to all writers out there – make someone's day by updating! :D

**iwalkinthelight – **You shall see what she meant! XD Yes, I somehow managed to squeeze poor Peta into a dress. I hope you enjoyed this chapter! :D


	14. No Requiem

_**Chapter 14**_

Peta tried hard not to swear, she really did. It was the failure that got to her. It just had to break down at this moment, and this time, on this specific day of the year. The truck had granted her the special experience of scaring the crap out of several students that were lazing by the school's gates. _Serves them right for skipping class_, Peta thought tersely. And she _must_ have been pretty hideous, because she even got a jerk of uncertainty out of a bravado-puffed-punk that was smoking a cigar in plain view on campus.

When she stopped to ask a girl where the main office was, the student stiffened up. Peta sighed, and ruffled her hair.

"Could you _please _tell me where the main office is?"

The girl blinked at Peta, seemingly realizing that Peta was possibly not the man-eating monster that she looked like. It helped when Peta released her hair from where it was angrily bunching up in her chignon. The girl swallowed. "Uh...inside, first door from the left."

"Thank you," Peta said shortly, and made her way up the front steps of the school. She stomped inside and opened the door to her right. There was even a sign with 'Main Office' on it hanging from behind the window pane of the door.

When she opened the door, the secretary at the desk looked up from behind long bangs and squinted at her as if she wasn't sure who had entered the room.

"Hello," Peta greeted halfheartedly, feeling a bit stupid for barging in with no warning.

"Hello," the secretary returned. "Can I help you?"

"Actually, yes," Peta admitted."My car kind of broke down and I have no cellphone. I was hoping I could call some sort of a service through your phone."

"Of course!" the woman at the desk said, standing up. "Here, come with me. I'll show you where you can call."

Peta let loose a sigh of relief. "Thank you so much."

"Oh, it's no problem. It gets a little boring around here sometimes," the secretary said, chuckling.

"Peta Bryant, by the way."

"Pleased to meet you! You can call me Mrs. Kessler for now."

Peta was taken outside of the main office and down a hall, where they turned left so they came to a lobby of sorts. The school was quite big, and the floors looked like they had been made from some sort of a marble. Whatever the thing was, the floor was quite slippery, and Peta was glad she hadn't decided to stay in those killer pumps of hers.

She was led to a battered black phone. She thanked Mrs. Kessler for her guidance and the secretary said she was free to stay until the service came to pick her car up.

"If you'd like, you could sit in the garden while you're waiting," Mrs. Kessler said. "It's just a little further down the hallway, fourth door to your right. Big, sunny, and flowery. Can't miss it. There's also a Gardening Club in there—they've got free block right now, so you'll have company, too. It's made up of seniors, so I'm sure you'll have no problem in talking with them."

"Thanks," Peta told her, smiling slightly.

"No problem." And Mrs. Kessler waddled away, and when she disappeared around the corner, Peta picked up the phone and dialed the number of the car service that she had memorized. Well, she had known that stupid truck was going to kick the bucket _sometime_, so she had the number at the back of her mind, just in case. _Finally, __**something**__ turned out to be useful._

She was faced with an annoying track of music that sounded like it had been ripped off a merry-go-round. At long last, someone picked up. The woman on the other line didn't sound too enthusiastic, and Peta could hear her chewing the gum whilst she was speaking.

"Happy Hunting Grounds Car Tow, where we put the happy back into your car. What can I do for you today?" the lady droned, making Peta wince at the name of the car service.

"Hello. My car broke down just about fifteen minutes ago—"

"Where are you?"

Peta scowled fiercely into the phone. She looked around until her eyes settled on a bunch of brochures with pictures of the school on them. "Hamilton-Jefferson High School."

"Alright. Tow truck'll be there in half an hour, tops."

And the line was dropped on Peta, causing her to glare a fiery gaze at the receiver. "Well, _someone's_ woken up on the wrong side of the bed today." She set the phone down, severely tempted to pick the device up again. _Garden—think about the garden_. Peta turned away from the phone and walked down the hallway, looking for the door Mrs. Kessler had mentioned.

As she trudged down the hall, she noticed that something smelled quite lovely. It wasn't food, thank heavens, because she wasn't quite sure how much food she could stand unless it was ice cream. No, this was the scent of some sort of a flower. She couldn't really tell what it was, since it was unlike anything she had ever smelled before.

The scent was crisp and fresh, yet smooth and comforting. It smelled like something straight out of a bottle, but this wasn't artificial. She didn't know how in the world she knew that, but she was one hundred percent sure that this was a _natural_.

Peta approached the door—which was made out of glass—and slid it open to the right. She stepped inside the sunlit room and took a look around. The roof was made of glass, too, and allowed many rays of light to cascade through and spill onto the plants, which were just about as green as plants could possibly get. There were white tiles beneath her feet. Terra-cotta pots were just about everywhere, and vines spilled from around corners, some sporting gentle pastel pink flowers, others a blast of heliotrope. There were even some splashes of calming cerulean.

The entire room was steeped in the wonderful scent, which she hadn't the faintest idea what it was. She was entirely certain that this was a flower.

The relative quiet of the room was shattered by a smattering of laughter.

"Hey, watch it! Don't wave the hose around like—EEK!"

Little droplets of water sailed through the air, some landing on Peta's head from behind a series of bushes.

"I am going to _kill_ you for that! _Christie_!"

"Hide me, hide me!"

All the voices were female. This had to be the Gardening Club. Hadn't Mrs. Kessler said something about free block? If only Peta had free blocks when she was back in school. Her class had spent the days cringing under the hawk-like stare of a very rigid Mr. Tweed. She didn't even want to remember what it was like to get a bad grade in his class.

"Please, you two, stop fighting."

This voice was softer, more reasonable; the peacemaker, no doubt.

"We're not fighting!" the two other girls said in sync.

"Tell her that she shouldn't brandish the hose about like some sort of a whip!"

"And tell _her_ not to come after me!"

There was a small sigh. "Really, why do you fight in the first place?"

"Look, it's not _my_ fault this freak of nature is my sister!"

"Ooh, you're asking for it!"

"Whatcha gonna do? Beat me up? I'm shaking in my shoes."

"Christie. Lia. Please...stop?" There was the peacemaker's voice again, and judging by the way the other two girls (sisters, weren't they?) talked to each other, it was safe to say one wasn't exactly fond of the other.

"I'm _only_ not ragging on you because Cheza's here. When we go home, you're gonna get it."

"The big bad Christie has arisen!"

Peta had taken a double take on the name.

It could be a coincidence, right? It had taken about three seconds to realize why the name sounded familiar: she had heard the name, day, after day, after day. Toboe spoke of the Flower Maiden with the greatest respect and affection. Actually, it wasn't only Toboe—it was the entire pack. Even the usually poker-faced and gritty Tsume softened when it came to the topic of the Flower Maiden and the time she had spent with the pack. She already had been told what the Flower Maiden's appearance was like ("She looks like a human...but the coloring is completely different."), and so on.

And then, the bushes parted, startling Peta and disrupting her thoughts.

Standing before her was a fairly short girl, with brown hair neatly parted at the middle and hanging down to her shoulders. Her green eyes stood out of her face, and she had a displeased mask of an expression on the said countenance. The high schooler came to a stop when she saw Peta, and blinked at her blankly before offering some sort of a greeting. Her jeans were dirty, and her white T-shirt was flecked with mud.

"Uh...hi."

"Hello." This was the _third_ time today she was saying 'hello.'

"...Are you the new student?"

"No," Peta said, shaking her head. "I'm just staying here because my car broke down. I'm waiting for the tow truck to take it away."

"Oh. Cool. Well, I'm part of the Gardening Club. You can call me Christie."

"It's not even a club, idiot!" Another girl emerged from the bushes, looking just as irritable. Peta's eyes widened in surprise. These two girls looked exactly alike. _Twins?_ "There are only three people—oh, hi."

"Er...hello." _Fourth!_

"Yeah, and this is Lia," Christie said dismissively, waving her hand in Lia's face as if to dust away her sister's presence.

"Peta," the thing in black returned.

"Nice to meet you," Christie told her before craning her head over her shoulder. "D'you need help with the tulips?"

"No, I'm okay!" came the answer—it was the peacemaker's voice.

"You guys have tulips in here?"

"We've got all types of flowers in here!" Lia chirped, beaming. Then, she seemed to remember something. "Doesn't it smell just heavenly? That's Cheza's new batch of flowers. I'll be damned to know what they are, but they're the loveliest things I've ever seen."

"Motor-mouth," Christie grumbled at her sister before turning to Peta again. "Would you like to see our little corner of paradise?"

Peta raised her eyebrow at the expression, but agreed anyway. "Besides, something tells me I'm going to wait a long time..."

"Come along, then!"

She was taken by a little stone path—there was even bonsai fountain in the far corner of the room. Leaves and plants brushed at her hair, and the air was cool with the moisture of recently sprayed water. The smell of wet earth was a comforting one. This place made her feel like it was early summer instead the beginning of winter. Finally, they came to a stop in what seemed to be, truly, an indoor jungle.

There were plants and petals everywhere, but the most prominent ones in the room were the flowers that were situated against dark, coffee colored soil in a raised stone platform. Their petals were pristinely white. The ones on the outer layer were thin, some of them even looking like transparent red wisps. The petals became thicker and wider as they converged into the center of the flower, which was like a dusting of faint sunlight. The entire flowerbed looked like it was glowing. She didn't know with what, but the vague phosphorescence was still welcome.

Someone was bent over the flowers, watering them carefully. The beads of water gathered at the tips of the petals. They shook slightly when the watering can was set down and the person who was taking care of the flowers looked up.

Peta found herself staring into a pair of very vividly colored crimson eyes. _No way that is—_

"Peta, this is Cheza, the third member to our awe inspiring Gardening Club!" Christie exclaimed, holding out a hand to introduce the two girls to each other. "Peta, this is Cheza. Cheza, this is Peta!"

"Pleased to meet you," the lilac-haired girl said, giving Peta a small smile.

"Same...same here," Peta replied, feeling more than just bewildered.

_Maybe my bad luck isn't that bad after all..._

- -

It had been quite some time since she had been waiting in the garden. Peta did not have access to a clock, but she knew for sure that it was _past_ a measly half-hour. In the meantime, she observed the three girls as they took care of the plants, laughed and conversed, sometimes including her. For the most part, Peta sat in a corner and let what rusty cogs could possibly be found in her aged thinking cap turn with squeaky vengeance.

If this _was_ the Flower Maiden, she certainly did not speak like her. Blue had told Peta that Cheza almost always referred to herself as 'this one.' The girl only a few steps away was using the word 'I' constantly. But then again, both the hair, the eyes _and _the name were the same as the ones that had been reiterated to her by the pack.

Because of all of this, it was not surprising she frowned frequently or offered a weak smile every time the girls so much as looked in her direction. For all she knew, her mind could be stationed on Mars right now and she wouldn't have noticed it. Too much to think about.

As she sulked, she did not realize that time was actually moving past (as hard as it was to believe, the world does not stop turning when one has grueling problems to contend with), and that it soon was three thirty: time for the girls to leave the greenhouse.

She only understood what was going on when Christie and Lia shouldered some bags that they had hidden behind the pot of a large ficus plant. The twins had bickered on and off whilst Peta had stayed in the greenhouse, but she could tell they meant well.

"So...we'll be off now," Lia told them, shooting a smile. "See you on Monday, Cheza."

"Same here."

"Bye," Cheza said, waving at them good heartedly as the sisters disappeared into the foliage and made their way back to the main hall of the school. She turned to Peta, a little concerned. "Someone is going to come and pick me up in a short while. Are you going to be alright?"

"Oh, just fine," Peta assured her, lacing her fingers together and cracking her knuckles. She was going to go home eventually—it was inevitable. She should take down the address of the school. "I'm okay. Just have to wait for a little more, that's all." _Oh, the excuse had __**better**__ be good!_

True to her word, someone _had_ shown up after around fifteen minutes to come take Cheza home. The woman, was, in short, quite striking. Her blond hair was pulled up in a messy-yet-stylish half bun, and she was clad in a tailored suit, looking sharp. A pair of glasses was hanging from her shirt, and she was holding a few books in her hands, along with some papers. Peta caught a glance of the book—_Biology and Human Anatomy: Understanding the Mechanics of the Human Body_. A teacher, perhaps? The woman's cool blue eyes spotted Peta, and she answered by giving a small wave.

After she had exchanged her fifth hello for that day, the woman and Cheza left, talking to each other after Cheza asked again to make sure that Peta was comfortable in waiting alone. Well, the school was empty, save for a few teachers and kids doing after-school activities, so she wasn't _really_ alone.

Peta's mind was too congested with whether she should get the pack's hopes up by telling them she had actually found something, but she was scared about whether she had made a mistake or not. On the other hand, wasn't it much better to make check it out and make a mistake instead of letting it go with the possibility that it was actually the real deal?

When Mrs. Kessler had come inside to inform Peta that the tow truck was here, she had already decided what to do. She really _was_ going to say something about it, or at least ask some questions before making statements.

Right now, what currently mattered was not to murder the tow-truck service guy so he could fix the car, so _she_ could get home.

- -

Cheza toyed with her pencil. There was a restlessness settling deep inside of her, and she knew absolutely nothing about what was causing it. What did it mean? She could barely concentrate on her homework as it was. If things kept going this way, she'd never understand calculus or algorithms. For some reason, there was a idea gnawing at the back of her mind, telling her: _You've forgotten something!_ Had she?

It certainly felt like it.

Sometimes, she found herself humming a tune—not a strange, discordant one—in fact, it was quite comforting, even though she could not find a memory of such a melody. It had happened on more than one occasion, and it was now starting to nag at her curiosity.

Something was _missing_. A puzzle piece was not fitting in. She sighed, giving up on such thoughts, and resigned herself to doodling a shape that was beginning to look like a complicated flower on the side of her mathematics notebook.

- -

She looked at Cheza discretely through the pages of her magazine. When the lilac-haired girl did not seem to calm down, she set the magazine onto her lap and dipped her head forwards so she wouldn't see through her glasses.

"Are you feeling okay?"

Cheza looked up at her, eyes slightly glazed. "Yes, just fine."

"You seem a bit anxious."

Cheza exhaled slowly, and sat up straight. "I don't know...sometimes...I feel like it's strange for me to be...speaking. As if I am doing something I shouldn't, or I wouldn't. It's a very odd feeling. It's like I've forgotten something extremely important, and I have no clue as to what it is."

She felt her back stiffen marginally at the words. Well, this had to have been coming, sooner or later. The truth couldn't be kept from Cheza much too longer—she was smart and assertive, even if she naturally was not a human. But what in the world could she possibly say? That she was just as in a bad position? That she knew more about Cheza than Cheza did herself?

"I'm sure it'll work out," she managed to say, her own voice sounding distant to her. "If you don't want to do your work, you don't have to. It's the weekend tomorrow."

"It's alright. I want to finish it early." Cheza turned back to the desk, leaving her alone with her thoughts.

This world had certainly been a different place to wake to, but perhaps it wasn't as hard to adjust because she was human. She wondered what had happened to that pack—the last time she had seen them, it had been through the windshield of an armored car. After that, the images were hazy, excluding one that was exceptionally clear: him crying.

She shut her eyes, trying to erase the sound from her mind, but was instead met with a memory.

_Everything above, below, to the sides—everything was cold. Cold with a vengeance and with stinging spite. She opened her eyes. The world was tantalizingly clear and fresh beyond the surface of the water, but she found that she could not reach it. _

_Each part of her body felt as if it were crafted out of lead. It was sinking, then drifting, then sinking again. She could hardly remember how to breathe. _

_And then: salvation._

_A burst of air, burning and frigid. She gasped for breath, feeling water travel up her windpipe and exit through her mouth. The nausea was amazing in amount. The surroundings spun at breakneck speed, and threatened to drive her mad if they didn't stop. _

_Her hands couldn't move. Her hair was loose. She was literally freezing. _

_"Oh, God!" A voice. A female voice. "__**Josh!**__"_

_"What d'you want—Jesus!"_

_"Help me get her out of the water!"_

_After: hands pulling at her own, warm but rough. There was something hard beneath her back, something dry. Her arms hurt. Something was definitely broken. Ah! Her __**leg**__! She opened her eyes with much effort, squinting painfully at the sun that pierced her eyelids. There were two dark things hovering over her. _

_She could make out concern creased features of a lady her age, a brunette with large doe-like eyes that seemed to take up too much of her head. The lady was saying something, but she couldn't hear what. When the woman repeated what she had been saying, she finally understood._

_"My husband is a doctor. He'll help you."_

_She saw someone standing up, and flinging a pack off his back and bringing it to the ground. Had these people been hiking? But it was so __**cold**__. _

_"You have to keep her awake." This time it was a man's voice. "Do something. Ask her anything. Just keep her awake while I find something to get her warm with."_

_"Alright." The lady leaned over her, shaking her slightly. "You stay up, okay? Don't sleep."_

_But she was so tired..._

_"Don't!" A little more shaking. _

_The fatigue was enormous..._

_"Wait! What's your name?"_

_The pull of interest let her become alert again. She opened her mouth to say it, but nothing came out. She tried again. "Sh..."_

_"What was that?"_

_"Cher," she whispered, voice cracked. She coughed again. "Cher Degre."_

- -

Kiba had been sitting silently by the door, thinking about the afternoon. He and Tsume had done a few rounds of the farm, accompanied by Hige. They weren't about to take any chances with Darcia looming about. Tsume was still out and Hige was spending some time with Blue. Besides, it gave him something to do rather than sitting around and trying to avoid being Jamie's next target for the entire day.

When he had seen the horrid little truck puttering and sputtering its way up the road (in a much more dilapidated manner than usual), he felt a sort of relief. Well, Peta was certainly back, wasn't she? When she stepped out of the car, he was enlightened to the way her appearance had been...altered?

Her dirty dress and oil smudged face did not stop her from marching straight up to the entrance, as determined as an army general leading his troops into battle.

The minute she opened the door, he knew what she wanted to say.

No amount of foul smelling oil could conceal the scent of the Lunar Flower.

- -

_**A/n:**_ Lots of jumping about in this chapter, eh? I've got an outline of what's going to happen next, so don't desert on me because of slow updates. :( I got really, really sick and this morning I had a migraine that was immensely painful. Thank God for painkillers and their sleep inducing qualities. I realized I hadn't put this in an earlier chapter! Peta's name is pronounced: "Pay-tuh." :)

**iwalkinthelight – **Peta generally does have bad luck. XD Gosh, you really have no idea what that means to me. :D Thank you very much for liking Peta as a character! Hope you enjoyed this chapter. :)

**darkmoon - ** Haha, I'm glad you liked it. I know someone like Jamie. :) Jamie and I have one thing in common, though—the clumsiness. It can be really destructive in the wrong places. XD


	15. In Which Sleep Ensues

_**Chapter 15**_

When she walked through the door, she had expected something along the lines of: "You found her!" or "What happened to _you_?" But there were no words. Silence stretched between them. Peta studied his face carefully—he wasn't speaking, but his entire expression screamed "Tell me it's true!" She didn't have to say anything.

She only nodded.

- -

Some time later, Peta was sitting down in the living room, surrounded by the wolves. She was narrating to them what had happened after a series of interruptions that seemed to be hellbent on trying to keep her mouth shut. Firstly, Toboe had barged into the room (he was being chased by Jamie). Ahote had already found somewhere unreachable to hide (beneath the couch, again), so the little boy's attentions had shifted to the toffee colored wolf. Nana had floated in and out of the rooms, looking for Jamie. When she saw that he was with Peta, she told her granddaughter that she would be going up early, leaving Peta to her fate downstairs.

When Jamie noticed Peta, he had promptly commented that she looked as if she'd been dropped into a peat swamp. This had caused an unsavory reaction on Peta's part, who had grabbed the boy and sat him down firmly on the couch, telling him to leave Toboe alone. If anything, the young wolf looked relieved.

Everyone knew Jamie could be a sweetheart, but there were times that everyone, even his own family, doubted that.

Jamie had continued to poke and jab at why Peta looked quite so horrible. Not being able to stand it any longer (she certainly had got enough of staring at the school), Peta had clomped upstairs, taken a quick shower, changed into a pair of her standard house-clothes, and trudged down again.

For a change, she had let her hair loose. She had way too much on her mind to think about a tight ponytail, and most of her social and talking skills (which weren't all that much to write home about), were being used to convey her experience to the pack.

The pack listened intently. Tsume, quite unusually, did not interrupt or disagree with her, as they usually did.

When she was finished, there was a short pause.

"What are we waiting for, then?"

Peta looked up at Hige from where she was sitting. "It's the weekend, and no one's going to be at the school."

"Are you sure you haven't made a mistake?"

So much for not disagreeing. Peta turned to Tsume. "I don't know. That's why were visiting on Monday—to see if I _have_ made some sort of tragic mistake."

"Peta makes _lots_ of mistakes," piped Jamie, now determinedly sucking on a lollipop.

"Thank you, Jamie."

"So...what do we do?" Blue asked.

Peta leaned forward. "Here's what I suggest..."

- -

Oh, she suggested alright. After she had convinced Tsume that it was practically impossible to find a student within an a hundred mile radius of a school during the weekend—excepting those who lived close to the school—she had moved on to say that she needed to fix that truck of hers. Again.

Kiba was getting extremely annoyed at the automobile. It seemed to cause much more trouble than it was worth. He might not have known about what humans deemed precious, but he was sure the truck was next to nothing at all.

The excitement had worn down into a weary anticipation—he wasn't sure he would be able to last two days. The curiosity was gnawing at him from the inside like a cursed itch, and it was an unpleasant feeling. He just hoped that Peta's guess was correct.

The sun was gone.

The house was now silent and dark, save for the rustles coming from above and Jamie's soft breathing. The little boy had fallen asleep on the couch. He had exhausted himself by running around in circles all day (whether it was in circles to catch Toboe or Ahote, it was the same concept), and when he had seen that the conversation between Peta and the pack did not make sense to him, he had promptly dropped off into a peaceful slumber.

Sometimes he wanted to be as careless and as naïve as little Jamie. There was always a thought to counter his wishes. Kiba believed that everything that had happened to him and his companions shaped who they were, what they did, and the events that took place.

As horrible as their experiences were, he would not change a thing if he knew he would lose this precious friendship.

Jamie started tilting dangerously to his right. He slid lower, lower, until he was falling slightly. To say the least, it was unexpected when a pair of sun-browned hands caught Jamie gently and hauled him upwards again.

This was the second time she had crept up without him noticing. These thoughts of his really were distracting at times.

Peta lifted Jamie off the couch and let him flop over her shoulder. Her cousin's sleep was not perturbed. His breaths continued to be even and undisturbed. The only sign that his body had registered what was going on was that he had clutched a small bunch of Peta's hair.

"I'll be taking this cowboy up to bed," she whispered, carefully making her way up the stairs and disappearing into the top levels of the house.

The room was now completely still, and continued to be so for a good fifteen minutes. He caught a glimpse of the shine of black fur underneath the couch opposite to him when something there moved.

Kiba thought he had been left alone, but his theory was proved wrong when Peta pattered down the stairs in her white tank top and black sweatpants, along with a thin robe. A pair of socks padded her footfalls, although he could hear them as well as he did when she wore those thump-inducing boots of hers.

Surprise twitched inside him when she plopped herself down on the couch, next to him. She let out a relieved breath, letting her head loll backwards. She ran a tired hand through her hair, which was now dry.

"Crap, what a day."

There was a minute pause.

"Two times."

"Sorry?"

"You caught me off guard two times."

Peta blinked at him, and then understood what he was saying. "Ha! Good to know. I haven't kept track of how much _you've_ scared me shitless by creeping up on me. Too many to count."

He felt the edge of his lips quirking up in a smile. Yes, it was true, he had given her a few frights by catching her unawares a few times. As much as he didn't want to admit it, it was a known fact that Peta had quite humorous ways to express being startled. She had even come close to hitting him over the head with a wrench.

"In the past few days, I've had more adrenaline rushes than I've ever had in my entire short life," she said, sinking down into her seat and adjusting her head so it was comfortable. "I can't imagine what it'd be like living like that constantly."

"It's...different for me, also. Peace isn't something I am used to."

"You call this peace? Man, you'd die of boredom if you lived with us year 'round."

For once, this was actually a conversation that she could bear. One that didn't make her feel too uncomfortable or like she was treading on his private place. Peta knew that she hated it when people impeded on her 'personal' information, so she tried not to be a hypocrite and give people (or, in this case, wolves) their space when they needed it.

"And the stairs."

Peta frowned at him.

"You did not trip today."

"You know what? I didn't! Now, _that's_ a surprise," Peta remarked, nodding and looking serious on purpose, "since clumsiness is an acute disease in this family...and Nana's the only one who isn't affected. Considering the fact that I maim myself on every corner of this house, today's a record breaker!"

"...You talk very much."

"It's all the pent-up emotion." She turned to him, hair spilling over her shoulder. It spread halfway down her upper arm. "But I suppose you don't do these 'release the emotions' things."

"No...not really."

"Ah, well. One day you'll discover the joys of punching a pillow, and you'll be addicted."

"...Punch a pillow?"

Peta nodded vigorously again. "Best damn stress reliever on the planet. Tried and tested by yours truly." She shifted her gaze to the ceiling. "When you can't really punch the hell out of someone you really, _really_ want to, just grab a pillow or two and let them have it."

Kiba suspected that this method worked, in a bizarre sort of way. He could easily picture Peta releasing her frustrations onto something as helpless as a pillow to help her overcome stressful situations.

"Don't you ever get angry?"

It was his turn to blink at the question.

"I mean, of course you get _angry..._but what do you do about it?" Peta turned to face him, pulling her legs up to her chin and wrapping her arms around them. She winced slightly as she pulled the muscle in her ankle. This did not go unnoticed. Kiba's eyes flicked downwards instantaneously; so fast, in fact, that she thought she hadn't seen it.

The bite itself had healed over pretty well, but straining it too much still made her hurt. She had done a lot of walking, so it was only natural that it felt sore.

Kiba took a moment before answering. "I don't usually do anything about it."

Her eyes widened a little bit, and then they lowered to make a slightly lazy expression. "I understand that part," she said, sticking her tongue out a bit. "I've gone through a phase where I didn't do anything to 'expel anger and strong feelings from my system,'" she added, making air quotes. "My therapist told me it wasn't good to keep emotions in, so I changed, I guess..."

"...Therapist?"

"A special person who helps you when you're..." she searched for the right word, but it didn't really come out the way she wanted it to. "Er...screwed up, sort of."

The look he sent her made her want to clarify the manner.

"Hey, I didn't say I was _perfect_, did I?" Peta moved her head forward, resting her chin on the top of her knees. "At least I don't need to visit him anymore."

"This...world. I've got much to learn."

"Nah, I betcha a hundred bucks it isn't all that worse than your place," Peta told him, smirking. "We've got some real pieces of work around."

Again, silence permeated the room. It really was quiet tonight. Either everyone was asleep, or they were thinking about what was going to happen in two days from now, keeping still in the process. Kiba decided that the latter was more probable than the first.

"Monday's going to be a treat," Peta said sourly, randomly. "I'm just dying to see Mr. Gruff climb into the back of the death machine."

It took him a few seconds to realize she was referring to Tsume.

"I'm sure riding in the front with me would be too traumatic an experience," she laughed softly. "I really _do_ need to get a new car..."

"How far away is this school?"

"Not that far, I can tell you," Peta said. "About...oh, twenty minutes?"

"...What did she look like?"

She stewed for a moment in remembrance. "Little shorter than me, lilac-pinkish hair in a bob cut, red eyes. You can't really forget once you see her. Colors like that aren't really usual around humans."

Peta listened to the quiet a little more before she spoke again.

"And if you're worried, don't be. She looked perfectly healthy and happy."

He would just have to take her word on it until Monday. Until then, he was still left wondering. Kiba sighed slightly, letting his eyes close for a second more than usual. He was used to keeping watch and being on the alert, but this house had dulled his senses, somewhat. An image of a black wolf sitting amongst the bushes with a muzzle dripping of crimson flashed into his mind, and he forced his eyes open. He would not let that happen again.

"Boy, you really are a tense guy," Peta said, eying his tight, vigilant stare and taut shoulders. "I can't really tell you to 'lighten up,' so how about 'relax?'"

The question hung in the air, dangling like a loose thread.

"...I take that as a no."

If anyone ever listened in on their conversations, Peta decided, they'd get tired of all the pauses and breaks in between the flow of the words. This break seemed to extend longer than the usual ones, so Peta forgot herself and began to become sleepy. She was already in her so-called pajamas and she was warm, not only from her robe, but from the fact that Kiba was sitting very close.

Peta moved to a sitting position.

She suspected that wolves had a higher body temperature than humans in general, which was the reason why she could feel the heat where she was. And damn it, it was making her drowsy. Peta was always partial to warm sleeping places. She could sleep when she was cold, but she was evermore comfortable when there was a bit of warmth to accompany her dreams.

The haze of sleep, a notorious distorter of thought, did not enlighten her to the fact that she was moving very similarly to how Jamie had only about half an hour ago. By the time she had completely leaned onto Kiba's shoulder, she was _out_ there. The fatigue had wiped her mind of any lasting thoughts and had turned it into a heavy slumber.

Kiba flinched when he felt the contact, stiffening. He looked down at the figure slumped against him.

...She was sleeping like a rock.

He doubted that she even had the awareness of a brick, judging by the way she appeared: long and consistent breaths streamed out of her, as if she hadn't slept properly in the past month. Her eyes were shut firmly, and her entire body's weight had been propped upon him.

No point in waking her up now.

As Kiba moved back to a more comfortable position (for him and her, both), a strand of her hair brushed across his face. It was wispy, and made him want to do nothing more than to sneeze, but he had to admit that these humans used these 'shampoos' quite effectively.

Peta's angle against him was anything but snug or cozy, but it made him feel oddly calm. The fabric of her robe was cottony and feathery to the touch.

When Kiba's eyes finally slid shut, too, he slanted in her direction, laying his chin on the crown of her head.

Ahote watched them curiously from his sitting spot beneath the couch, golden eyes alight with interest. It was nothing scandalous, and both of them had been extremely tired; this state could be credited to the explosive week they had recently gone through.

The mistress looked peaceful, for once; most of the lines of that had creased her face during sleep were gone—they hadn't _all_ vanished, but he knew very well that they most likely would never completely leave her. Still, it was a great and heartening improvement that she was sleeping well, even if it was only for one night.

Ahote had minded the wolf when he had first arrived, but now, he was not all that hostile anymore. After meeting Toboe, he had been convinced that all wolves couldn't possibly bloodthirsty monsters. The pup might be just a tad lively when he was awake, but he was a saint of the highest order compared to Jamie.

The coal-furred canine placed his vulpine-like snout on his paws, and let sleep pull him away from the night world.

If she was happy, nothing else mattered much.

- -

Two days passed, painfully and slowly, as if they had been designed to rise and set in the longest, most time-consuming manner ever known to man. Peta wasn't that anxious herself, but the pack was quite close to being just that. Well, 'anxiety' wasn't really the word to describe it. Anticipation. That was pretty much the only word that fit the wolves' atmosphere.

She had hardly managed to get breakfast that morning, and only then had she explained that they weren't setting out any earlier than two o'clock. She didn't want to stand outside the school just to wait—Peta was planning to drive to the school when the students were preparing to go home.

There wasn't a very positive (but not negative, either) response to this, and all Peta had said was: "Me, drive. You, don't. Me, know the way. You, don't. Go? Be my guest." That had settled any doubts that they were leaving before lunch.

But, finally, the time came, and everyone piled into the pickup (which had been taken to the engineer's, dissected, smashed, then put back together again). Toboe sat in the front with Peta, not minding the bumpiness of his seat at all. He had sat in the front before, and he didn't really mind it.

There had been a split second when Toboe had snapped his head to the right, as if he was looking for something—expecting whatever it was he was looking for to be beside him. Peta had asked him what was wrong, but Toboe had shrugged it off, saying it was only a trick of hearing.

Kiba was silent for most of the trip. He had sat in the corner of the back, staring into the wooden floor of the pickup while the other three conversed in bits and pieces. When asked if he was alright, he assured his friends that he was fine, and went back to thinking what only Kiba could think about.

When they had arrived at the school, there hadn't been any sign that the passengers were moving. Only when Peta punched the horn of the car and created a tremendous trumpeting had she gotten a satisfactory reaction ("Trying to blow my ears off? That's some loud shit...).

The walk to the school was tentative.

There wasn't much to talk about, but Peta could feel something tense building inside of her, like it was ready to burst if there was nothing to hold it back. Eventually, they reached the school's doors. As they walked inside to the hall, a heinously loud bell sounded above them, making even Peta (who had the weakest hearing out of all of them), stuff a pinky in her ear in an attempt to block out the racket.

The halls soon filled up with students, but none had come from the direction she was looking in.

Guided by memory, Peta took them to the garden.

- -

"Cheza! It's time to go."

"I know, I'm coming. I just have to water these, and I'll be right there."

"I'm waiting outside. Take your time."

"Alright."

Cher shut the sliding door behind her, shouldering her bag so it wouldn't aggravate her already strained muscles. Just the amount of papers she had to carry was daunting without the added weight of the humongous books.

She wanted to get home early today, so she could have some time to finish grading those stupid papers and continue with her research. Cher dug around in her coat pocket to find a pen of some sort, so she could write down on her planner not to forget to overlook Sally's lab. The girl had turned it in late, and she was sure to forget to grade it if she didn't have a written note somewhere.

When Cher looked up again, she was almost a hundred percent sure that she was hallucinating. The image in front of her did not waver. She had the urge to reach up and rub her eyes, to make sure what she was seeing was real.

"..._You_!"

A black haired girl to the side frowned. "You guys know her?"

"Hello again," Blue said coolly, shifting her weight from one foot to another.

"How did you get here?" Cher said, awe hiding in her voice.

"So you have no idea either, then," Hige observed.

"Where is she?"

Cher knew instantly what Kiba was talking about. She straightened, meeting the wolf's gaze calmly. "Inside." She watched his stare avert itself. " Don't go just yet." She glanced back at the door thoughtfully, and then turned back to the pack. Cher sighed. "There are a few things I have to tell you..."

- -

Since this was, frankly, none of her business (she had said it herself), Peta had wandered into the garden to keep Cheza company while the pack discussed this mysterious topic of theirs with Cher.

Kiba kept his gaze trained on the scientist, as if he was afraid she'd magically pop out of his line of vision. He wanted answers, and he wanted them quickly. He wasn't going to stand for any games, much less games of a person who had previously viewed Cheza as an experiment.

"Well...first thing's first." Cher took off her glasses, and placed them in her lap. "She has no recollection of what happened before—nothing."

There was the tiniest hesitation before the questions surfaced.

"What? Why?"

"What happened to her?"

Cher rubbed her temples tiredly, as if she had thought over this before. "My only guess is that this was a precaution; that it was caused by her mind to protect itself from trauma. Cheza is not fully human, so I have absolutely no data to count on. I haven't the slightest idea about how a Hanabito's mind works."

Cher tried to make it as simple as possible, and not to break into any unnecessary tangents. "It's like someone's pressed a reset button. She's even regained her sight."

"What can be done to get her memory back?"

Cher shook her head, not knowing how to answer Toboe's question. "That's what I've been trying to figure out. So far, I've come up with nothing but dead ends. My lab is gone, and so are all my notes. I had to start from scratch." She passed her gaze over every pack member, making sure they heard her last words. "I haven't told her anything yet, but something inside her is trying to remember. I'm sure of it."

- -

Cheza hummed as she watered her plants, and stopped when she realized she was doing it again. _This melody...where is it from_? The question plagued her constantly. She decided to continue with her work instead.

Peta had taken a detour to the restrooms. "Too many fluids," she had said before trotting off, only to come back a second later to ask for instructions. She was a funny one, but seemed to have an underlying responsible layer to her.

The red-eyed girl was wholly absorbed in the care of her plants. She did not notice it when someone came in through the back door, which led out to the school ground. Cheza reached out to relieve her flowers of dead petals when a gloved hand came into view, pulling the petals away before her.

A funny twinge arose in her chest, one of thorny uneasiness.

She looked up.

"My, what beautiful flowers you have here..."

- -

_**A/n:**_ Guess who? Studying for mock exams—all I have to say. Found an awesome music piece from the soundtrack, fell in love with it. "Shiro, Long Tails." (Or "Long Tail's?") Must've listened to it a katrillion times today. XD I also love "Rain of Blossoms." This chapter's got a bit of my version of the notorious 'fluff.' I want to make this realistic, so please stick with me even if updates are slow! D:

**iwalkinthelight –** Yes, well, the 'blinded' part was a sort of a bad pun. XD If I remember correctly, humans can't smell the Flower Maiden (I may be wrong, mind you). I originally wrote in the scent as if it were the Lunar Flowers. :) They must smell amazing, don't you think? Yes, migraines are horrid and painful. :( Yay for spring break! Good luck on your ELA!

**Anonymous persongirl** – I'm glad you like it, and I'm even gladder (gosh, that looks like 'bladder' o_O) that you like Peta! :D Yes, her meetings are completely unintentional. XD I'm happy I can keep you guessing at times. :)

**J** – Thank you so, so much for the lovely compliments! :) I'm very happy that you like Peta. She is a bit quirky, but very fun to write, definitely. :D And a bigger thank you for saying the characters were in character! :] That's a very important part for me in fanfiction, and I think, in that aspect, fanfiction is harder than original fiction. Hope you enjoyed the chapter! :)


	16. Your Day Has Come

_**Chapter 16**_

Her boots were silent against the marble of the floor, unlike they were at home. At home, every step she took could be heard by the people all the way down in the living room. The wood served as a perfect conductor of sound—as a result, you knew exactly where the person above you was.

Peta's hand slid the glass door open, and she walked through. She expected to see the lilac-haired girl bent over her flowers, but no such sight greeted her. Her brow furrowed and wrinkled in confusion. She took another step, now cautious.

The water can was lying, discarded, on the floor, its contents spilling out freely in a puddle of sparkling water. One wet footprint was a few steps away from the puddle, and it was too large to be Cheza's. Some petals littered the water's surface, but most of them were concentrated around the flower bed. Peta's gaze was drawn to the flowers themselves. They seemed to have sagged over, not quite dead and withered, but not at the peak of health, either.

A horrible idea set itself in the back of her mind.

Peta turned on her heel and looked around the room one last time. It was vacant—deserted. Why did she always seem to lose the people that counted the most? A slew of curses were on the tip of her tongue, but she couldn't let her anger go just yet, because there was another emotion piling up on her.

Guilt.

Would she ever be rid of it?

Peta glanced at the water can once more. It had been dented, its neck bent and destroyed. Had none heard it falling to the ground? What had happened here? More importantly: _where was Cheza_? She didn't have the answer, and that was what scared her.

At that moment, Peta decided that she hated empty rooms the most.

- -

When she had said 'gone,' he hadn't quite registered the meaning of the word. Only later did the realization come, hitting him over the head with much more force than necessary. He was angry. Oh, yes, he was angry. Frustrated, too, furious and _tired_, above all, of letting the things so important to him simply slip through his fingers.

And quite predictably, Kiba found himself being angry at Peta, specifically.

What had she been _thinking_, leaving Cheza alone? There was a small part of his brain that was telling him the same thing would have happened if Peta had been there. Why was his mind so definite? Because somewhere in there, he already knew what had occurred. That little wedge of him, the part that was completely wolf, had the answer prepared.

Even when they went into the garden, it wasn't much of a surprise to find a familiar sour scent overpowering Cheza's flowery fragrance. Even when Tsume cursed and paced so hard that he could've created a dip in the floor, Kiba knew that what would commence next had been planned out long beforehand.

"There was nothing she could have done," Toboe told him, seeing the familiar set expression on Kiba's face.

When he didn't receive any answer, Toboe sighed and turned away, knowing that Kiba was infamously difficult to convince about any matter that he made his mind up about.

Cher hadn't had the best of times since she was dumped in this unfamiliar place, and this only made it a whole lot worse on her part. She had, quite honestly, died and returned, only to experience more of the adventure that she had sought to escape.

In short, the afternoon was sullen and dark—none was willing to speak or make up some sort of a strategy; not whilst Kiba was still simmering in the way he was. They all knew it was their first and foremost priority to get Cheza back. Kiba knew that as well. And for the time being, he was to sit back, as nerve-wracking and difficult that was, and think out what to do next: something that he usually didn't do. Emotions were Kiba's compass, and he often acted without thinking, most of the time endangering his life. Now, even his mind realized that if this next 'move' didn't go well, they might as well kiss Cheza goodbye. Permanently.

He was not about to let that happen any time soon.

- -

When the day darkened and the sun sunk beneath the hills, Peta was sure she was going to burst. There was a slow burning fuse inside of her. Even though Kiba hadn't mentioned anything to her, she knew that somehow, indirectly, she was at fault for the Flower Maiden going missing. For the first time in years, Peta felt like getting up and having a smoke. It was an indicator to her just how stressed she really felt.

Luck seemed to love laughing at her and the blunders she made. Weren't the mistakes that she had done back then enough? Another pang washed through her, and Peta silently thanked Nana's strict regulations after she had given smoking up. It was a filthy habit, and she had no need of it any longer, but, apparently, there was a tiny segment of her mind that was still irrational and sixteen, in a way.

Currently, Peta was watching a conversation unfold between the members of the pack. They had gathered around the coffee table, as was usual, and were speaking, suggesting. She was sitting far away, isolating herself on an armchair beside the window and the entrance to the living room. Ahote's head was on her lap. Peta was stroking him absentmindedly. She could hear what they were saying from where she was seated.

The blonde woman (Peta had learned her name was Cher) had also come by—she and Nana seemed to get on well together. They were in the kitchen; Peta knew because she could smell the scent of coffee wafting out to the living room.

A voice broke Peta out of her thoughts.

"How about the mansion?" This was Toboe's input.

"Do you really think he'd keep her there? He knows that we have a way back there," Hige said, sounding doubtful, "unless there was something that makes him stay in that place."

"There _was_ lots of equipment in the basement," Blue pointed out.

"It's not dumb to think that he needs that scientific junk," Tsume grumbled. His hands were shoved in his pockets, and his face was drawn with lines of thinking and anger. "It'd be safe to guess that's where Cheza is."

"It won't be easy." That, of course, was Kiba. "He'll be expecting us if he hasn't moved."

The conversation continued for a few more minutes before a sound stopped nearly all other noise. It was the doorbell.

Brow furrowed in confusion, Peta got up from her armchair and walked towards the door, Ahote on her heels. She grasped the doorknob and pulled inwardly, opening the door and revealing who was standing outside in the chilly weather.

Leather jacket, burned hole on the top left. Tobacco. Stale breath, bleached hair. Daisy smirked at Peta, whose face set into a mask of warning. What in damnation was this reject doing, prowling around her house? Daisy certainly hadn't come to make small talk.

"Well, howdy there, Bryant."

Ahote growled, pinning his ears down on his head and baring his teeth at the sound of Daisy's voice. Peta blocked Daisy's line of vision by stretching one hand and laying it on the door frame, not allowing the other girl to pass. "What d'you want?"

"No words of welcome this time, either! Whatever happened to hello?"

"I am one inch away from kicking your ass to Antarctica. Have you got something of importance to tell me?" Peta narrowed her eyes as Daisy tried to glance over her shoulder and into the living room.

"Ooh, you've got _guests_."

Peta slapped the door frame, managing in getting Daisy's attention away from the interior of the house and back onto her. "That's none of your business," Peta replied in a clipped tone. "What do you want?"

"You know, I've noticed you always liked to rush things."

"Spit it the hell out, or you'll be spitting out teeth."

"You threaten me with violence? My, you've sunken low, Bryant."

"I won't repeat myself," Peta growled, her patience thinning. "_What do you want_?"

"I've got some interesting news for you." Daisy shifted her weight from one foot to the other. "If you come outside, I'm willing to share."

Peta looked at the living room out of the corner of her eye. Her gaze traveled to Ahote who was still by her side, snarling in a not so contained manner at Daisy. She startled the dog when she pulled him back gently and patted his head. He looked up at her with confused amber eyes. "Down, boy. I'll be back in a sec."

She shut the door in the faces of a very puzzled looking pack and a flustered Ahote.

Once all light from inside had been blocked by the door, Peta's face turned into a scowl. She wanted this _thing_ before her to vanish out of her sight and never return. "I'm sure you didn't drop by out of the goodness of your heart."

"All too right," Daisy sneered, her eyes taking on an ugly sheen. "As if anyone would willingly visit you. Your guests were pretty good lookin.'"

Peta tensed.

"Has anyone been elevated to bed-warmer status yet?"

That sentence caused Peta's already strained string of patience snap. She was too weary and aggravated to take this kind of trashy treatment. _How dare she?_ Before she could comprehend what she was doing, she had grabbed Daisy by the throat and pinned her against the side of the house, anger blurring her vision.

Daisy coughed. "Just like good old times. PMS, much?"

"You're either going to say what you came here to say, or I'll throw you out. Your choice."

"I jus' wanted the satisfaction of telling you that Tori's back in town." Daisy studied Peta's countenance for a few more seconds before laughing as much as the grip around her throat would allow her to laugh. "I needed to bring a camera, too!"

Peta yanked her hand away, allowing her grip to carry Daisy for a little while until she released it completely. She let a threatening sound escape her mouth. "Get _out_ of here. Never step within this area again, you hear?"

Daisy rubbed the red ring on her neck gingerly, coughing a little more. She straightened and laughed again. As she walked down the slightly sloping path, she waved a hand to alert Peta that she had another thing to say. "Watch your back for a few days, Bryant." Another laugh. "You just might find silver in it!"

Peta watched as Daisy faded away into the night. Only when she felt a sting of pain in her hand did she look down and notice the crescent shaped cuts on her calloused palm. She shook her hand out and made a mental note to wash away the blood when she went back inside.

- -

When Peta reentered the room, she seemed more reserved than he had ever seen her, Toboe decided. Even when the others left for sleep and even Ahote dozed off at her feet, still she remained in the armchair, her chin propped up on one of her hands, gazing out of the window as if she were searching for something difficult to find.

When he approached her, she didn't seem to register that he was near. So, instead, he just patted her on the shoulder. Her head snapped around, eyes wide. When she saw it was only Toboe, she relaxed considerably, sagging back into the chair.

"Oh, hi there, Toboe."

"Hi." He sat himself down next to her on the floor, crossing his legs and getting into a comfortable position. "Who was that girl?"

"Hm? Oh, Daisy?" Peta frowned, as if she had tasted something sour. "No one important."

"She didn't seem very nice."

"No. No, she isn't. At all."

"...Don't worry."

"What?"

"Don't worry. About Kiba, about Cheza." He turned to face her. "Kiba has a lot of pride in being a wolf, and he's very driven by his convictions. I don't think he blames you, or anything. He's just angry."

Peta smiled slightly at Toboe. "Well, aren't you quite the comforter?"

"Ah, I don't mean it in a bad way—"

"I never took it in the bad way. Quite the contrary. Thank you," she said, leaning back and shutting her eyes. "I feel better."

"Oh. I'm glad."

Truth be told, Peta really _did _feel better. It hadn't been an in-depth conversation (heck, it was barely a minute long exchange) or anything, but just the reminder that someone like Toboe still existed was enough to give her the push she needed. He had been through a lot of very trying things, and he still retained his considerate nature afterwards.

Then, there were people like Daisy. They had everything from the start—home, parents, food, money, care—and yet, they turned out the way Daisy was: a rotten, backstabbing, conniving girl that didn't deserve to have her parents actually _be_ her parents.

"Hey, Toboe?"

"Yeah?"

"What are you going to do? About your friend, I mean."

"We're planning to go to that big house again tomorrow."

"...Do you need someone to show you the way?"

"I assumed Kiba knows the way."

_He probably does, _Peta thought dryly. "Would everything fall apart if I came?"

Toboe shrugged. "Cher is coming, but she's only coming along because we thought that the things she knows about science might be needed."

"I see. Okay, then. I'll see if I can't follow on bike. Engine needs exercise anyway."

"Alright." Toboe yawned. He got up and stretched, feeling sleep tugging at his eyelids. It had been a tiring day. "Um...goodnight, then."

"Goodnight."

- -

_Fwoosh._

Inhale.

_Plip, plip._

She watched the greenish bubbles pass her by. Something about this entire situation was hauntingly familiar. How was it possible that she was even breathing? With a slight slur of disbelief, she realized she _wasn't._ She wasn't _breathing_.

Everything was hazy; she felt groggy and disoriented. Where was she? What had happened? Where was Cher? Where was _school_?

She could barely move. She tried tugging at her arms for them to come closer to her, but they seemed to be fixed in an upward angle, away from her. Panic started to spike through her body, making her heart beat faster than what was regular. The water seemed to froth and bubble more violently as she got more upset. She saw something move beyond the water and in the darkness of the room. Even though her vision swam, she could make out a white mask.

The voice was muffled—was she behind _glass_?

"Can't have you getting upset. You'll damage it..."

_What?_

"You are awake. Excellent."

She wanted to get away from here. Who was this person? The room around her began to come into focus. There were pipes, rows of test tubes, discarded glass orbs, tanks, cracked baubles and a limitless amount of scraps of paper flying everywhere. This looked like a madman's abode.

The white mask floated before her, the body of the person obscured by the darkness. "You do not remember me? That is quite a shame, Flower Maiden."

The name struck something in her mind, brought up a wave of feelings she didn't know existed. Whoever was out there, observing her, must have taken notice of the change in her expression, because it moved closer, and a glove pressed against the glass.

"Your mind is such a complex thing—completely different from what those humans consider to be normal." The glove slid away. Darkness. "Now...calm down..."

Something was released into the water; she could hear the capsule coming apart. The temperature of the water cooled all around her, strangely inducing more drowsiness. The prickling cold embraced her against her will, beckoning her to close her eyes.

Another hissing sound.

Despite the veil over her consciousness, something inside her mind was stirring, telling her not to give into the unnatural sleep. When she responded by sinking deeper into the haze, that defiant part of her mind jerked in annoyance, and then unleashed a torrent of indecipherable things into her dulled senses as a last resort to keep her awake.

Smells, sounds—voices—feelings, touches, apologies, the smell of blood—_blood—_wind, so much wind—and pain. Pain that made her muscles contract with its intensity and her heart strain with its burden. The feeling that the world was slipping away, that she was dying, and there was nothing else to do.

Many sounds flashed through her mind: the rustling of leaves, a breeze, the patter of legs—of paws, several voices that were unknown and yet so familiar; above them all rose a harmony of howling.

She knew who she was.

She remembered.

The tune and the words—they made sense.

The flowers. The _flowers_!

She struggled, trying not to give in. This was wrong. She needed to find them, to get out of here! The sleepiness made her head bend over; she couldn't help it. Her eyes were closing, slowly. It now felt foreign and bizarre to see, even though she knew the colors and the shapes surrounding her.

It was no use.

Whatever was in the water—it was some sort of a sedative.

The white masked loomed before her again, and this time she recoiled, albeit slothfully.

"You know now, don't you?"

Everything was starting to be rimmed with black. She finally caved in, letting her eyes close completely. The slumber lunged over her like a predatory animal, covering her and smothering her. She could faintly hear the sound of some sort of electrical buzzing.

What was he preparing?

The sleep overtook her wholly, marking its passage when she relaxed in the water. There was only one word in her mind, burning through everything else, shining through even the shroud of the artificial slumber.

_Paradise._

_- -_

**_A/n:_** Feel free to chuck things at me. XD Sooo...the villain has popped up yet again. I do have the outline down, but again: updates will be slow. On another note—129 reviews?! Jesus, you guys, you're awesome! When I posted the beginning of 'Alone,' I didn't think anyone would like it. :) **_THANK YOU!_** And before I go...please check out my Naruto oneshots? :3

**iwalkinthelight –** Thank you for your great review! :D Yes, the action does get dizzying at some point, and all characters need a rest. Well, Cheza remembers now! XD Ooh, I wish you luck on those tests! I've had a family member take them, and I remember from the amount of books flying about that it wasn't pleasant. XD Very happy to hear you enjoy this. Thanks again. :)


	17. To Find, One Must Look

_**A/n:**_ Mock exams. Real exams. More real exams that are going to happen after the weekend. Must I say anything more? On the good side, I'm writing lots more (especially on FP) in my free time, and the next chapter to _Alone_ will be up very soon, if all goes as planned. 'Tis highly recommended you listen to Wolf's Rain soundtrack whilst you read this. ;) It's what I wrote it to. :D I'm getting ready to see one of my favorite singers live next week and have taken to composing. I have actually composed a tune for a character that will show up in chapter 18, and when chapter 18 is here, I'll put aforementioned tune up. :) To end it all—I'm EXTREMELY EXCITED to be writing this again!

**iwalkinthelight – **Yes, she certainly remembers now. Eh, don't you know the villains? But, ho, hum, I just might have something up my sleeve. ;) And don't worry about Daisy and her mean hints—that'll clear up in chapters to come. :) And _yes_, I definitely write Naruto oneshots. :D

* * *

_**WARNING:**_ Bad language, courtesy of Peta and Daisy.

You have been warned!

_**Chapter 17**_

The morning that dawned was hazy and cloudy. Some sort of distorting veil seemed to have been draped across the surroundings; everything looked blurry and unfocused in terms of emotions to Peta, who was contemplating the 'visit' to the mansion this afternoon over a cup of seldom-drunk coffee. She spun the mug silently around and around, taking comfort in the grating sound it produced when it circled the wood.

Mist curled at the window and traced the sills with silken fingers. The temperature of yesterday was much hotter than what it was today; she guessed this is what caused the clouds of fog. She didn't mind walking through it—instead, it was very calming and it gave her a 'creepy-horror-movie' type of feeling. For some childish reason, it was satisfying to see the fog roiling around her legs and parting as she walked through it.

Peta took her mind off the weather and went back to racking her mind about this afternoon. After witnessing the spat in the clearing, she wasn't all too sure that she was confident in the fact that they would come back without sporting any scratches or wounds. Only a scuffle (in their standards) had cost her a few days of walking and jogging normally. What would a full blown _fight_ be like?

"—ta...Peta!"

Her head snapped up, startled out of her reverie. "Hm? Sorry?"

Nana sighed. "Child, you've been staring out the window as if the Great Spirit himself walked past." She looked out the window, searching for what Peta was observing so diligently. When she found nothing, she turned to her granddaughter. "What transfixes you, little one?"

Peta gazed into the eddying, chocolaty depths of her coffee. "Just thinking, that's all."

"You have been doing much of the thinking lately. I am starting to wonder if it is bad for your head."

"Oh, ha, ha, Nana," Peta said sardonically and lifted the mug to her lips for a sip of the warm, fragrant substance.

"What type of thinking do you engage in?"

"The twisted, insane type."

"Ah, you are in a mood to shoot barbs. I shall not say anything more on the subject."

Peta hid her mouth by drinking from her mug again. "Glad to see I'm so easy to read."

"Quite the contrary, little one. If someone does not know you well enough, they would consider you to be...how did you say it? 'Loco-roco.'"

The young woman's face transformed into a scowl. "Since when did Mrs. Doomsday gain a sense of humor?"

"Only because I do not tease you all day, does not mean I am devoid of what you call a sense of humor."

"Well, I'm _really_ not up to sitting through a stand-up comedy act." Peta set down the mug and gripped it with her two hands, trying to ward off the chill coming from inside with the warmth from the fired and treated piece of clay between her palms. "Did you know that Tori's back?"

The playful atmosphere surrounding Nana evaporated instantaneously.

"She is here?"

"Apparently, if Daisy didn't lie."

"I want you to stay away from her."

Peta's eyes darted up to meet Nana's. "You don't need to tell me that. I don't go into town a lot, anyway. She's supposedly dropping in for a few days."

Nana put away the dirty dishes in the sink. "That girl is dangerous, Peta."

"Another thing I know." A pause. She toyed with the handle of the mug before saying something else. "...I used to be like that, remember?"

Nana turned to her, eyes blazing. "_Used _to. You _used _to. But your heart was never as black as hers."

"Whoa. Taking it a little too far, doncha think?" Peta ran her fingers on the rim of the mug. "Anybody's heart can be black."

"It comes to that girl naturally."

"Where is all this animosity coming from?" The young woman stood, allowing her loose hair to fall off her shoulders. "If you're talking about that time, then that was purely my fault." She stopped and looked Nana dead in the eye. "_Mine._ Mine, and no one else's. You hear?"

Nana shook her head, observing the suds climbing the sides of the sink like some sort of deranged pestilence. "Try not to run into her. For me."

Peta smiled wanly. "Okay, Nana. I won't. Not that I _want _to, anyway."

"That suffices for me."

There was silence for a moment, until Peta huffed out a great puff of air, as if a burden had been lifted from her shoulders. She clapped her hands together. "Well, that's that. If you need me, you know where I am." She slid easily into her jacket and then turned to Nana before exiting through the door. "Has anyone woken up yet?"

"I have not noticed anyone up, no."

"Good. I need the time to think." Peta walked towards the door, grasping the knob firmly.

"Do not harm your mind."

Peta rolled her eyes. "That was so funny that I forgot to laugh. See you later, Nana."

- -

That afternoon found everyone fidgety, including the scientist, (or ex-scientist) Cher. The cold chill that had settled in the morning still had not lifted. Peta remarked sarcastically that the weather was misbehaving for ambiance. That had earned her a few dull stares. Jamie, as usual, was a rocket of energy—he barely slowed down, despite the fact that practically everyone surrounding him was either fifty miles down in the dumps or surprisingly distant.

Peta was grouped into the 'distant' category. Her mind was off and wandering about things that had occurred a long time ago and had no chance of being fixed. While her mind was working at four hundred miles a minute, her eyes were fixed upon the clock. Lately, time seemed to have become so precious and irreplaceable that she wondered where it all had gone. She was already twenty and had done close to nothing with her life in general. What did she _want_ to do? College? Work? Stay on the ranch for the rest of her days?

Not even the walk she had taken had straightened her head. _Nobody's_ head was on straight. At least, that was the impression one got.

At around three in the afternoon, a sort of silent cue spread throughout the house and the pack started to leave. Peta was unsure whether to follow them or not, but after seeing Cher look back and forth from the path and the pack, she said goodbye to Nana and decided to offer the scientist a seat on her bike. Cher was a bit reluctant at first (she didn't have that much experience with motorbikes), but Peta eventually convinced her that her old machine was pretty much harmless and managed to get Cher onto the back.

A familiar bottomless feeling was settling in her stomach as she started up the bike and got it ready for the road. It was that damn annoying sensation that something horrid was coming their way. It wasn't a jittery, 'oh-my-gosh we're totally going to screw up' kind of feeling. It was more of a 'Good Lord, what awaits us' feeling. Which wasn't at all good. Having made many mistakes during the time she lived, Peta knew how to differentiate between the two.

She felt sorry for Cher when the bike jerked forward and the scientist had to cling for dear life onto Peta's shoulders. If she held on any tighter, Peta would choke. As long as it didn't obstruct her driving, it was fine, though.

The mist whizzed past them as the bike cut a clean path through the wispy clouds. The pack wasn't too far behind, and Peta made sure she wasn't going too far ahead for them to follow, though she sincerely doubted that Kiba and the rest would be lost on their way to the mansion. They probably knew their way already.

When Hardford mansion loomed into view, Peta felt her stomach clench. The bitter taste that had presented itself in her mouth at the beginning of the journey only intensified. It didn't help that the Hardford estate looked like a Gothic mansion out of an ancient book. Its spires seemed to tear into the gray sky; the humongous doors bore down on them, holding a warning. When the black outline became more defined against the sky, Peta stopped the bike and leaned it against one of the trees in the sparse landscape. She got off swiftly, latching her helmet to one of the bar handles and instructing Cher to do the same.

"I don't want the bike too close to the house," she mumbled, thankful for the gloves on her hands that were absorbing the sweat of her palms. "Not that we can get close with it, anyway."

"You've been in there before?"

Peta threw a narrow-eyed glance at the home in question. "Too many times to count."

"I suppose that's good, then."

"Hopefully. C'mon, we shouldn't be left behind."

Their steps seemed to echo along the openness and bounce off the walls of the withered, abandoned garden. Peta remembered scaling the wall of the garden and walking amongst the shrunken, parched plants, trying not to tread on their dead leaves for fear of making a sound. Many a time had her classmates whispered to her of the 'ghost' sighted in the mansion's windows. Some said it was Mr. Hardford, still lurking about his lair of a mansion, tinkering with his lab equipment and preparing a ghastly new experiment.

Peta had seen a picture of Mr. Hardford in an old issue of the local newspaper. It had been a black and white photograph, but the features of the man depicted was something one could not easily forget. The lighting in the picture had not been extremely good, so some of the light reflected off of Mr. Hardford's glasses, hiding his dark eye from view. She remembered the crease of the white shirt and the crooked breast pocket, mostly because of the two scalpels that had been sticking out of it. His hair had been parted awkwardly, almost as if he had just gotten out of bed. The nose was straight and only slightly hooked at the end. A scar of tremendous profundity raked its way down his visible, left eye; it had turned the iris milky and ripped the flesh around the eye socket, dealing irreparable damage to the man's face. He was a tall and gangling man, with only a hint of a hunch on his shoulders.

It was well known that the picture was rare, if not the _only_ photograph anyone ever had of Mr. Hardford. He had been a recluse, shying away from society's light and keeping to himself and his precious research. His wife had been the socializer of the two, but close to everyone doubted her attitude was real. To be _married _to a man like Michael Sullivan Hardford, she must have had some sort of a reason for sticking with him. Years had gone past since she had been declared dead—if she were alive, she'd would have been around seventy, seventy-five years of age.

Even a long time after its closure and abandonment, Hardford mansion retained all its grandeur, be it dark or not. There was a suffocating air surrounding the house, and it grasped all that wandered within its reach. Peta had grown used to the sharp corners, the creaking floorboards, the inexplicably large rooms that seemed to continue when you set foot in them.

She could clearly recall her first time in that basement, and she was not happy about it at all.

- -

_The atmosphere inside the room was close and musty; this place had not been disturbed since before either of the girls entering had been born. Dust lined the floor, thick and unchanged by time. All was silent, all was dim. One could barely see where the other was. _

_"Fuck, man, if this thing gets us killed..."_

_"Chill, will you? Everything's alright."_

_"It's alright?!" the girl to the right hissed, clutching onto her companion's jacket as if she were too scared to let go. "Have you even __**heard**__ what they say about this place?"_

_"That it's haunted? Yeah, right. And vampires exist."_

_"What if...what if it is? What if all of those rumors are true?"_

_"Then I guess we'll have to find out."_

_"Are you stupid?" the blonde bit out, still extremely hesitant of taking another step into the basement. "Look at all that...junk! __**Look**__ at it! How're we supposed to know it won't freaking grab us?"_

_The black haired girl gave a low laugh. "Great idea. Machinery groping girls."_

_"Don't play hero with me. I know everything about you, and you're probably scared enough to piss your pants."_

_"True," the black-haired one replied, "but you have to admit it's interesting."_

_"Even the guys didn't come!"_

_"They're cowards."_

_"How did you drag me into this?" Blonde whisper-screamed, still hanging on for dear life from her darker friend. "How do you always manage to bring me along?"_

_"Daze, calm down. Acting like a schizo isn't going to help you __**or**__ me."_

_"That's what you say, and you're the one that's really nuts!"_

_Black-hair drew her face into a frown, although the other one couldn't see the grimace in the darkness. "If we stand around talking about it any longer, the day'll pass and we won't have done anything."_

_Peace reigned for about six seconds. An unspoken agreement passed between them both. _

_Blonde straightened up and took her hands off her friend's jacket, finally reaching forward and pushing the door open even wider than what it was before. The sparse light that hit their backs and cascaded down the spiraling staircase seeped into the front of the room, threading tiny strips of light into the gloom beyond. There was nothing there for them to see except aged floorboards and a truckload of dust and grime. The fair-haired one moved first, taking the stand in the room and peering about cautiously, waiting for something grisly and gruesome to leap at her from the still shadows. _

_Black-hair soon followed and stopped beside the other. They stood for a moment before Blonde broke the silence._

_"What now?"_

_Pause. "We take a snoop around, see if there's anything interesting...or scary."_

_Blonde shuddered. "Let's do this fast so we can get out of here."_

_"We'll be done before you know it."_

_And, not really being aware of exactly __**what**__ they were seeking, both branched out in separate directions. There was close to no sound as they shuffled around the humongous basement, trying not to trip over random implements that stuck out from unexpected places. There was the tinkling of glass, and the rub of wood against wood. _

_Then, there was a small grunt of surprise as Blonde stumbled upon something she considered worth seeing._

_"Peta!" she whispered out into the darkness, and nearly hit the roof when the girl in question slithered out of the murk that encompassed the room. "Shit, don't do that!"_

_"Do what? Breathe?"_

_"Forget it, idiot. Shut up and look at this."_

_"You're in a good mood," Peta mumbled, and directed her gaze over to where the blonde __was pointing. _

_Tucked in one of the furthermost corners of the room was what appeared to be a gigantic square. Its height surpassed both the girls', looming over their heads threateningly. The blonde one approached it and touched one of its surfaces, drawing back when she felt it rough and ragged. _

_"That's one big-ass cage."_

_"...What could have possibly __**lived**__ in that thing?"_

_"I really don't care, and I really, really, __**really**__ don't want to know."_

_"Point taken."_

_There was a slight hiccup in their banter. Peta stepped forward to take a closer look, and her companion followed her. In the moment which all was quiet, a small groan became audible. The two friends exchanged a glance and then looked around—nothing was there. They were alone in the room. No one was with them except maybe the spiders that crawled the walls and the insects that lived in the cracks scattered around the room. The sound increased, creating an echo in the large basement and making their ears ring. _

_"What in the seven circles of hell is that?"_

_"I have no idea," Peta answered, her eyes raking the darkness for anything out of place. _

_"It sounds like something's...breaking."_

_And then, there was a loud, metallic snap. Pieces of the cage littered their feet; both watched as the cage tipped backwards, almost under an invisible influence. The groaning seemed to reach a peak; it stopped abruptly when a hole opened up seemingly beneath their feet, revealing a well-hidden trapdoor. Peta lost her footing and regained it just in time to save herself from plummeting into the gloom below. Daisy had scrambled to the right, nearly hugging the wall. _

_The cage disappeared into the gullet of the trapdoor, landing at the bottom with a resounding crash and bang, making both girls shy away quickly from the edge of the of the sheer drop with noises of surprise. _

_Daisy gasped when the trapdoor slid shut again with a tired moan; just before it shut entirely, Peta got a glimpse of what seemed to be like stairs to the far left of the trapdoor. The square in the floor now looked completely normal, albeit a little less dusty than it was before. "What just happened?"_

_Peta was stiff with shock. She still felt like there was no floor to support her. She didn't want to know or think about what would have happened had she truly fallen in. "I think...I think our weight triggered that door."_

_"That cage is freaking gone. It fell in that hole. That thing's more than six feet deep, count on it."_

_"If we only had some light...we could see..."_

_"Don't even think about it. I'm not about to play Indiana Jones just so you can see some creepy trapdoor in a haunted mansion."_

_"But I saw stairs."_

_"Go get a Nobel prize. We're splitting."_

_"Aren't you just a smidgen curious about what's down there?"_

_"Who says 'smidgen' anymore, anyway?" Daisy grasped Peta's upper arm and started to tug her towards the exit. "We're not going back in there. Uh-__**uh**__." _

_"Whatever you say, Daze."_

_"That's right. Whatever I say goes. So keep going."_

_Peta rolled her eyes and let Daisy lead them out of the basement. Before the blonde slammed the door behind them, she turned for one last glance at where the trapdoor was. It was a square next to the island counter, cleverly nestled between the wall and the end of the counter. In front of it was what seemed to be a broken tank, wires spilling out of the container and hanging over the glass like plastic serpents. _

_She knew it definitely was not her last time down there. _

- -

"Cellar, basement—same thing," Peta sighed, shaking her head.

"Did you say something?"

"Nah, nothing. Just some stupid self-comment, that's all."

Cher looked up at the mansion, which they had come closer to. "The former owner was a scientist?"

"I wouldn't call him a scientist," the young woman beside Cher said sullenly. "I'd call him more of a sadist."

"...That bad?"

"I wouldn't know the real extent of it, but I'd say yes."

"How long has this house been standing?"

Peta shrugged. "Oh, about...eighty years. Apparently, they built it, let it sit for a decade, and _then_ moved in."

Conversation (well, the fragments of a conversation) ceased when they came to a stop before the large doors. The atmosphere could hardly be called comfortable; the tension was drawn tautly between them, and Peta still wasn't feeling all too grand about what had happened with Cheza, although there was a very good chance of the Flower Maiden being at the mansion.

"Where are the nearest exits?" Kiba's tone was clipped.

Yep. He was definitely still angry.

"There's the way that I showed you out back, but the only way to reach to reach it in order to use it is the basement..."

Tsume's face was drawn into a tight expression. "And if he's in there, what the hell do we do then?"

Peta gave them a bitter smile. "If he's in there and we get stuck, we're screwed. Royally."


End file.
